ANOTHER EVENTFUL DRAFT DAY FOR COYOTES
After a spectacular meltdown in the 2016 Western Conference finals, the Arizona Coyotes parted ways with several key players, three of whom were members of the 2011 Stanley Cup-winning team. The first to leave was Tomas Kaberle, who had suffered a fractured femur on April 5th at the hands of Colton Gillies. The Czech defenseman recently announced his retirement after 17 seasons. Next, the Coyotes traded Brett Connolly to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for David Perron, Nicolas Roy and the 15th pick in the 2016 EHEC draft. Connolly had scored at least 24 goals in four of the last five seasons in Arizona. Finally, the Coyotes made a difficult decision, sending their franchise leader in games played, goals and assists to the St. Louis Blues. Shane Doan, who will turn 40 in October, had been the Coyotes’ captain since 2003. Doan’s departure had been somewhat foreseeable, especially on draft day, when the team acquired Mikko Koivu from the Carolina Hurricanes. The Finnish center is rumored to be the leading candidate to fill the team’s vacant captaincy.
To compensate for the losses, the Coyotes acquired playmaking center Claude Giroux and offensive defenseman Andrej Meszaros. Giroux should anchor the third line, while Meszaros is expected to join Luca Sbisa on the team’s second defensive pairing.
The Coyotes were not only active on the transaction front. On draft day, they made sure to add a few promising prospects to the organization. With a 1st round-pick they had acquired in the Connolly trade, the Coyotes selected talented winger Tyler Benson, from the Vancouver Giants. The Edmonton native is expected to develop into an elite goalscorer with tremendous defensive acumen. Next, with the first-round pick obtained last summer from San Jose in the Roberto Luongo trade, Arizona drafted Windsor Spitfires defenseman Logan Stanley. Standing at 6’6’’, Stanley is a bruising presence at the blue line. Then, with their own first-round selection, the Coyotes chose two-way forward Nathan Bastian, who showed decent shooting and puck-handling skills last season with the OHL’s Mississauga Steelheads.
In the second round of the 2016 EHEC entry draft, the Arizona Coyotes selected winger Otto Mäkinen, from Finland’s Tappara Under-20 team. While Mäkinen’s goal-scoring instincts rank below average, his vision and skating ability make up for it are tremendous. Mäkinen is also rumoured to be somewhat of a fitness guru.
In the fourth round, center Jordy Stallard’s name was called at the 104th position. A product of the Calgary Hitmen, Stallard is an effective, yet unspectacular forward. His competence at the faceoff circle is likely his most noticeable asset.
To wrap up the 2016 draft, the Coyotes selected towering defensemen Vladimir Miroshnichenko and Konstantin Chernyuk with the 178th and 208th picks, respectively. Both Russian blueliners are very limited offensively, but could develop into useful stay-at-home defensemen.
After an eventful start to the offseason, the Arizona Coyotes are expected to slow down once free agency starts, as the team currently stands very close to the salary cap.
Arizona Coyotes 2016 Draft Review
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