Arizona Coyotes Leave Big Questions After First Major Cuts
Oct 3, 2016; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks forward Markus Granlund (60) is hit by Arizona Coyotes goaltender Louis Domingue (35) stick during a preseason hockey game at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports
The Arizona Coyotes made some deep cuts to their training camp roster on Sunday afternoon, with only a few surprises heading down the I-10 to Tucson. The biggest questions, however, still remain in Glendale.
The Arizona Coyotes made some cuts earlier last week, releasing amateur tryout players like Jalen Smereck and Lane Pederson, but after Saturday night’s 3-2 overtime win in Glendale, Head Coach Dave Tippett alluded that deep cuts were coming, and he wasn’t kidding.
The Coyotes cut 17 total players from their training camp roster Sunday morning, most namely sending Conor Garland, Henrik Samuelsson and Michael Bunting to Tucson while releasing former Carolina Hurricane Zach Boychuk from his professional tryout deal.
Yet after that layer of cuts, which likely formed the bulk of Tucson’s roster for the season, some intriguing players remained with the NHL club that raised some interesting questions.
Jun 24, 2016; Buffalo, NY, USA; Jakob Chychrun poses for a photo after being selected as the number sixteen overall draft pick by the Arizona Coyotes in the first round of the 2016 NHL Draft at the First Niagra Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports
Question 1: Jakob Chychrun has impressed management all training camp, but can he make the Opening Night roster with six other defenseman fighting for only a single spot?
Few players from the recent draft, let alone players as young as Jakob Chychrun, have impressed their respective organizations as well as Chychrun has.
While we watched Chychrun slide to 16th in the draft, he’s been out on the ice this September proving that he should have been in the top five.
Over the course of Chychrun’s preseason efforts, he’s averaged more than 20 minutes of ice time, taking top pairing shifts with Connor Murphy and highlighting why he was 2nd on the draft boards before his last junior hockey season.
But Chychrun has competition for the final roster spot.
Suspended veteran defenseman Jarred Tinordi is working his way back towards being a legitimate NHL player. Klas Dahlbeck has also grown to become one of the Arizona Coyotes’ better defensive defensemen.
Yet in the end, if Chychrun is really as dynamic as the initial reviews claim, he might just find himself in the desert this winter instead of Sarnia, Ontario.
Jun 26, 2015; Sunrise, FL, USA; Lawson Crouse is presented with his team jersey after being selected as the number eleven overall pick to the Florida Panthers in the first round of the 2015 NHL Draft at BB&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Question 2: Lawson Crouse survived the first round of major cuts, so does that mean he’s going to play in Arizona on Opening Night?
Lawson Crouse has impressed during his first training camp in the Coyotes organization, to say the least.
He’s been racking up top-six minutes during the handful of preseason games he’s suited up for and before Monday night, many could conceivably see Crouse making the Opening Night roster.
But on Monday night, everything changed.
As @RealKyper just intoned, Tobias Rieder to sign a two-year deal in the $2.25M range — in the near future.
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) October 4, 2016
With Tobias Rieder back in the mix for the Coyotes on their top-9, Crouse’s roster spot suddenly comes under direct fire.
According to many roster predictions, the Arizona Coyotes would have had a winger slot open for Crouse if Rieder ended up not resigning. But since Rieder is back, the only starting winger role is likely on the 4th line and that spot is heavily dependent on the role of Ryan White, who can flip between wing and center.
There are also other facts as well, such as the progress of Stefan Fournier and Christian Fischer during training camp since they’re both natural right wingers.
TSN’s Bob McKenzie has already stated that he believes “[Crouse is] going to play as a 19-year-old.”
However, for now, it appears as if Crouse’s Opening Night plans are still in limbo.
Apr 24, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Flyers center Ryan White (25) during the second period against the Washington Capitals in game six of the first round of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Derik Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
Question 3: At what capacity does the coaching staff intend to use Ryan White?
Speaking of Ryan White, his role on the Arizona Coyotes for this season is a little confusing. He does bring some strong bottom line checking skill, as well as some outstanding penalty killing ability.
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Yet his positioning and lineup consistency will complicate the route to the NHL for a variety of prospects vying for roster spots this fall.
If White is played regularly at center on the 4th line, then the Coyotes will be looking for a lone prospect to fill a top-6 center role, a bottom-6 winger role, and two skaters to fill healthy scratch roles.
If White plays wing with that same consistency, the the Coyotes will need two starting centers, plus the two scratches.
But if White becomes an irregular player, only dressed for specific games requiring a heavy back-checking presence or extensive penalty kill, then more starting spots open for rookies to fill. In fact, if White were to take on a support role, two centers and a winger could introduce themselves to the highest level of professional hockey.
None the less, White’s role this season will be a critical aspect in deciding how often and which rookies will play in Glendale.
Apr 7, 2016; Nashville, TN, USA; Arizona Coyotes center Laurent Dauphin (76) skates the puck into the offensive zone during the second period against the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
Question 4: Both Dylan Strome and Christian Dvorak are fighting for a top-9 center role, and what kind of role does Laurent Dauphin take on in the fray for a roster spot?
In discussing the open center spots for this edition of the Arizona Coyotes, many could argue that only one skating and one scratched role will be available to attain, with that starting role likely on the first or second lines while another spot remains open as a scratched or rotational depth player.
Regarding that top centerman role, the race is down to only former 1st round pick Dylan Strome and Illinois-native Christian Dvorak. Both have competed extremely well in camp this fall, showing off why both are some of the top rated prospects in hockey.
Strome brings that supportive role to the team, mostly in how he moves the puck around, looking to pass before he shoot. Dvorak, on the other hand, is a shoot first kind of player who has the capacity to play a 200 foot game.
In the end, that multi-phase kind of skill may be more of what the Arizona Coyotes need coming into this season rather than an accessory player.
Jumping over to Laurent Dauphin, this situation is far more dependent on what kind of a role the coaches place Ryan White in. Like I said earlier, if White plays wing or is scratched more often than not, Dauphin may be a good fourth line player. But if White earns that 4th line center role, Dauphin will either be a healthy scratch or be playing top minutes for the Roadrunners.
However, because White is so versatile, Dauphin’s role isn’t a necessity for the Arizona Coyotes right now because if a center gets injured and White is playing wing, he could shift over and a scratched player, like Stefan Fournier, could lot into a lower winger role.
Hanging above all of this is the highly plausible idea that the Arizona Coyotes keep both Strome and Dvorak, pushing Brad Richardson down to the fourth line, and then deciding after the fact on what role White would play and if Dauphin should spend some time in Tucson.
Both Strome and Dvorak are NHL ready players who are competing for limited roster spots, but maybe their values are so high that roster spots are made for them regardless.
Feb 2, 2016; Glendale, AZ, USA; Arizona Coyotes defenseman Michael Stone (26) checks Los Angeles Kings right wing Dustin Brown (23) during the third period at Gila River Arena. The Kings won 6-2. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Question 5: What happens when Michael Stone returns from injury?
During a game in late March last season against the Philadelphia Flyers, Michael Stone collided with Michael Raffl and subsequently had to have surgery to repair some seriously injured tendons in his left knee.
During his absence, the Arizona Coyotes called up stopgap minor league players like Alex Grant to fill that void.
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But as the new season is set to begin, Stone remains on the injured reserve roster and has been skating in a non-contact jersey during practices, leaving many to wonder who will fill his void.
In all likelihood, it’ll be young power play specialist Anthony DeAngelo, who was acquired for a second round pick during this last draft from the Tampa Bay Lightning. DeAngelo has a bumpy history, having been suspended multiple times in junior and minor hockey for threatening teammates and officials.
Yet, DeAngelo has shown this fall why John Chayka dealt a second round pick to Tampa for the beleaguered defenseman.
DeAngelo is the puck moving, offensively-minded defenseman Arizona has needed to put on their power play in support of Oliver Ekman-Larsson for a long while. There is little doubt that DeAngelo would be unable to succeed at an NHL level, and for any more proof, look at his goal against Vancouver from Monday night.
But what if DeAngelo does succeed and Stone returns as scheduled. Arizona could send DeAngelo down to Tucson, but if he’s played such an integral role in the power play, is that such an easy call?
This question has perhaps quietly been the most important question for the Arizona Coyotes all training camp, because Anthony DeAngelo is part of the future of Arizona’s defensive structure and the answer is that at some point, players like Michael Stone and Zbynek Michalek will have to be phased out.
It’s simply a matter of how well DeAngelo produces and how soon that happens.
It’s always a gamble to trust youth over experience, but in the case of DeAngelo, the more goals you score on the power play, the more game you win and wins get you to the playoffs.
If you want “White Out’s” in the desert again, you should probably be pulling for the youngster from New Jersey.
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