It might take awhile, but the Arizona Coyotes are trying to rebuild the right way
After the draft, and rebuilding the Farm System, the Coyotes started the Free Agency period trying to fill out the roster. They did pick up a few players. The most interesting one I saw was Defenseman Patrik Nemeth. The Coyotes traded Ty Emberson, a Defensive prospect, to the New York Rangers for Nemeth and 2025 and 2026 second-round picks.
General Manager Bill Armstrong has said many times, “We haven’t shied away from telling everybody in the world that we’re trying to acquire draft picks” and he has.
The Coyotes have been lacking defensemen that can play the right side. They have acquired two Right side Defensemen in Josh Brown and Tony Stecher. Brown signed a 2-year deal, and Stecher signed a one-year deal. These two players are mainly for much-needed depth.
Forward Laurent Dauphin returns to the Coyotes with a one-year, two-way contract. Dauphin played for the Coyotes in the 2018-2019 season. He has spent most of his career in the AHL.
The big splash was the re-signing of Lawson Crouse. He signed a 5-year extension worth $21.5M. It’s good to see him stay with the Coyotes and was a big part of the production for last year. Crouse had 20 goals, and 34 points last year and played an average of 17:26 minutes of ice time. He should play on the second line, as the best shooter on that line.
Most of the trades and signings were not huge names, but were solid players, and character guys. The Coyotes are trying to change the culture in the organization. An always work hard mentality. When you are trying to change culture, it takes time in the NHL. Bill Armstrong even said it would take up to 5 years to make the playoffs.
I’m glad they are playing in the ASU stadium. It is a smaller stadium and will sound loud with fewer people in the house. It should be a Home Ice advantage for a struggling franchise.
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