Dobber's offseason fantasy hockey grades – Arizona Coyotes

For the last 14 years (12 with The Hockey News) Dobber has reviewed each team from a fantasy-hockey standpoint and graded them.

This year, due to Dobber’s battle with cancer, he recruited Cam Robinson (of Frozen Pool Forensics fame) to pinch hit. The 15th annual review will appear here on DobberHockey throughout the summer. This is not a review of the likely performance on the ice or in the standings, but in the realm of fantasy hockey.

Enjoy!

Gone – Shane Doan, Radim Vrbata, Mike Smith, Peter Holland, Josh Jooris, Jamie McBain, Alexander Burmistrov, Laurent Dauphin, Connor Murphy, Anthony DeAngelo, Teemu Pulkkinen, Craig Cunningham, Brendan Warren, Grayson Downing, Jarred Tinordi, Chris Mueller, Dave Tippett (Head Coach)

Incoming – Derek Stepan, Antti Raanta, Niklas Hjarmarsson, Adam Clendening, Zac Rinaldo, Mike Sislo, Andrew Campbell, Joel Hanley, Brandon Hickey, Merrick Madsen, Nick Coursins, Mario Kempe, Hunter Miska,

Impact of changes – Few teams rocked the boat this past offseason like those in Arizona. From their captain, coach and starting net minder, this forthcoming edition of the Coyotes will look much different. Derek Stepan immediately slots in as the team’s top line pivot after Martin Hanzal left at the deadline last spring. Meanwhile Raanta will get the ball for his first shot at being a full-time starter. Hjarmarsson will be there to steady the backend with Clendening looking to replace some skill that DeAngelo’s departure left behind. We’ll need to wait on the new coach but it’s safe to say that whoever replaces Tippett will be a positive thing for the young, skilled youth on the team. On paper, this is a much-improved squad.

Ready for full-time – Clayton Keller finished his one and only season at Boston University as the top ranked freshman in a multitude of offensive categories and was seventh in the nation for points-per-game (1.45) and third for shorthanded tallies (3). The exceptionally skilled forward recorded two points in three games for Arizona once he turned pro in March and will likely benefit from the departure of Tippett who traditionally shied away from plugging rookies into key roles. Read more on Keller here.

Dylan Strome was given seven games at the start of 2016-17 but his skating and pace weren’t where it needed to be. All he did was go back to junior to record over two-points-per-game, win a silver medal at the World Junior Championships and come up a whisker short of hoisting the Memorial Cup while being named tournament MVP. The powerful centre is now eligible for the AHL, but should be given every opportunity to line up in a middle six-role this fall. Read more about Strome here.

Christian Fischer looked very strong in his first professional season, recording 20 goals and 47 points in 57 AHL contests. He followed that up with a positive seven game stint with the Coyotes, recording three goals. He’ll be in a fierce battle to earn a job out of camp. Read more on Fischer here.

The 12^th overall selection in 2014, Brendan Perlini has made strong strides in his development. He scored nearly a goal-a-game in the a 17-game stint in the AHL and looked more than capable during his prolonged run on the big squad. Perlini looks to have a left-wing spot locked up this coming fall but a strong camp to impress the new bench boss will be needed. Read more on Perlini here.

Fantasy Outlook – The Coyotes are a team on the rise. The moves they’ve made this offseason illustrate a desire to no longer fill the cupboards but to begin putting those stores to use. Their forward core is chalked full of future high-impact players and the addition of Stepan helps solidify that group. They also still own one of the premier fantasy defenders in Ekman-Larsson, while Raanta will immediately become a viable third goaltender option for most leagues. There will be growing pains along the way, but this team has the markings of a future fantasy goldmine.

Fantasy Grade: B (Last year: C-)

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