Congratulations! (Or not) You've been named the new GM of perhaps the best team in Arizona, the Arizona Coyotes.
With last year's roster, it looks like the woes will continue (note injuries at the end of the quote - some important ones):
Note that the Coyotes are also paying Ribeiro 1.444 million for four more years (bought out), as well as Yandle 2.625 for one more year (took on half of his salary in the trade). That means their current cap space is nearly 35 million.Forwards
T. Rieder (1y/.925m, RFA) - M. Arcobello (RFA) - S. Doan (1y/5.3m)
M. Erat (UFA) - S. Gagner (1y/3.2m) - Mikey's favorite, D. Moss (UFA)
C. Cunningham (RFA) - K. Chipchura (1y/.850m) - J. Szwarz (1y/.635m)
T. McGinn (RFA) - J. Vitale (2y/1.117m) - B.J. Crombeen (UFA)
Defense
O. Ekman-Larsson (4y/5.5m) - M. Stone (1y/1.15m, RFA)
K. Dahlback (RFA) - A. Campbell (UFA)
J. Moore (RFA) - C. Murphy (1y/1.076m, RFA)
Goalies
M. Smith (4y/5.667m)
Random AHL goalie.
Injured
M. Hanzal, C (2y/3.1m) - M. Boedker, LW (RFA) - L. Korpikoski, LW (2y/2.5m)
Draft picks:
- Two 1st-rounders: #3, & Chicago's (acquired for Antoine Vermette)
- Two 2nd-rounders: TB's (acquired from NY in Yandle's deal)
- Two 3rd-rounders: MIN's (acquired for Devan Dubnyk)
- One 5th & one 7th.
Their current coach is somewhat renowned Dave Tippett, known for his quality defensive strategy.
As for prospects, they have some. For the top-tier forward prospects, they have Max Domi (a short but capable playmaker), Anthony Duclair (acquired for Yandle - a fast sniping winger), and Brandon Perlini (power-forward winger). They also have Henrik Samuelsson (younger brother of Philip, & Ulf's son), Laurent Dauphin (who is always good in the EA series), and a couple other centers I don't know.
Defensively, they have Brandon Gormley (who has fought the organization multiple times for lack of playing time, and is most likely to be traded) and a few other bottom-2 guys like Philip Samuelsson.
In goaltending, they have Louis Dominique (who was Smith's backup for part of the time) and Mark Visentin, along with Brendan Burke.
What do you do? Who do you draft? Do you do any trades? What FAs do you go after? Or do you just hope that they're moved to Quebec?