SalarySwishSalarySwish
Avatar

Highsman13

Member Since
Jul. 19, 2019
Favourite Team
Arizona Coyotes
Forum Posts
48
Posts per Day
0.0
Forum: Arizona CoyotesFeb. 8, 2023 at 8:25 a.m.
Forum: Arizona CoyotesJan. 26, 2023 at 12:44 p.m.
Thread: Bill Armstrong's 5 best moves thus far in his tenure (opinion)
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>Highsman13</b></div><div>Yes, an actual Coyotes fan on this website. Most Yotes fans I know avoid any interaction here because it's all just "LOL POVERTY FRANCHISE" and "RELOCATE TO HOUSTON LMAO" and a bunch of other nonsense in every trade, signing or any thread involving us so we don't really participate because why bother. Anyway, GMBA is my favorite general manager this team has ever had because he actually has a plan and a vision which I can't say for any of our previous regimes. There have been plenty of things he's done which I have questioned and disagreed with as a fan of the team but I am very happy with what he has been doing. In my personal opinion, here are my 5 favorite moves that he has made as GM of the Arizona Coyotes.

1)Vancouver trade. Do I need to say anymore? This move changed the trajectory of two franchises so hard it's comical. I won't go into detail about the Canucks' situation because that's not the pont of this post, but OEL and Garland are not the core pieces we thought they would be when they were here in Arizona, and at best they are complementary pieces and the Coyotes avoiding those two contracts, ESPECIALLY's Oliver's is a win in itself. Add on the fact that we got assets for it and it's a steal. The 9th overall became Dylan Guenther which is good enough, but the 2nd they gave us was traded to Minnesota for Jack McBain, another rookie who looks great. Tack on another 7th for good measure and you got yourself an undeniable fleece of a trade.

2)Gostisbehere for nothing. Another absolute fleecing courtesy of the Philadelphia Flyers. Ghost is not the perfect defensemen, especially when it comes to playing in his own zone and has absolutely boneheaded turnovers, but man his presence in the offensive zone is insane. The fact that they gave us a 2nd and a 7th as well is nuts, especially since we can flip him at the deadline potentially and get even more assets out of it. Personally I wouldn't mind re-signing him for 2 years or so depending on the price; if he keeps up this play we could get even more for him further down the line.

3)Andrew Ladd for nothing. This one is a bit funny to me because I remember reading the Capfriendly thread about it and people labelling it as a "massive win" for the Islanders and laughing at us about it (gee, I wonder why Yotes fans don't post anything on this site) because apparently the Coyotes "didn't get enough out of it", which is strange considering we got 2 seconds and a third for free. Ladd was a good leader in the locker room last year and we will get that conditional third this draft thanks to his retirement, and getting all that draft capital would be good enough on its own but man we put it to good use. The main part is the 2021 2nd round pick which ended up being 60th overall; that pick ended up being JJ Moser, who is easily our most solid and consistent defenseman every game. He is good in all situations; he isn't a prospect at this point, he is a full time NHL player and is really good at it as well. Speaking of which...

4)Valimaki waiver claim. This was a low-risk claim to begin with, a former first round pick with injury troubles is always a good reclamation project to acquire, but I had no idea how good he would actually be. Another solid defensemen who perfectly complements Moser and the duo is easily our top pairing of the future. I enjoy the contract he was given today; very low-risk and very very high reward if he continues this level of play. If he does with the contract we gave him next season expect a long-term deal.

5)Vejmelka signing. This one is the most surprising on this list, nobody expected this. When he was signed, I and most other Coyotes fans thought that he was just a guy who was brought in to allow as many goals as possible to get the highest pick possible via losing, but he has been great. The first season here he showed flashes of brilliance and us Yotes fans thought that if he could just get more consistency, he would be a solid starting goaltender, and this year he has taken massive strides in that direction. I am very excited for his future on the team and he's actually the next jersey that I want to buy.

There are plenty of honorable mentions especially regarding the cap dump trades, I'll mention two specifically: Kolyachonok (good D prospect) and a 2024 2nd from Florida for a 2023 7th just to get Anton Stralman's contract off the books for them; and two different 7th round picks: Ben McCartney in the 2020 draft and Sam Lipkin in the 2021 draft. The former is one of the best players on our AHL team and Lipkin was on the USA team at the WJC this year, which is great mileage out of some 7th rounds picks who usually dont amount to much.


WHOOPS this was a very long textwall but I am very happy about having Bill Armstrong as our GM, the guy is fantastic and has pulled off the most one-sided trades I have ever seen not just in Coyotes history but in recent NHL history; that Vancouver trade genuinely has potential to go down as one of the biggest fleecings ever seen in the NHL. For the first time in a long time I am genuinely excited and hopeful for the future of this franchise.</div></div>

Bill Armstrong has done an underratedly great job building this team. Dumping OEL and getting Guenther was huge. He seems to get the most out of everyone and really weaponizes the cap Arizona has. His drafting is also good, and with a prospect pool headlined by Cooley, Guenther, Maccelli (kind of a prospect), Soderstrom, Geekie and Doan, it's safe to say hockey will be in the desert for a while. Plus, this team will walk away with one of Bedard, Fantilli, Michkov (👀), Carlsson, Benson, or Sale, making them even better.

Also, it's refreshing to see a Yotes fan on Capfriendly. Not too many of you guys actively kicking around. Really enjoyed the insight you provided here, and I love to see hockey in an unconventional market like the desert. Seeing two desert kids like Matthews and Thompson tear up the league is awesome. Plus, how could anyone hate the franchise that gave us the kachina??? Arizona is way overhated, and people will be eating their words when Arizona is running the league in a few years time.