After the Minnesota Wild won the Ryan Suter sweepstakes on Wednesday, bringing the former Nashville Predators defenseman to the Twin Cities along with former New Jersey Devils captain Zach Parise, a number of Suter's other suitors are exploring backup plans.
Those plans could include Phoenix Coyotes defenseman Keith Yandle.
Yandle was reported to be available for the right price on the eve of last month's NHL Entry Draft, and when Boston Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas waived his no-trade clause later that day, it raised speculation that the Beantown-born blueliner could be headed home.
That, of course, didn't happen, and as it turned out, nothing at all came of Thomas waiving his no-trade, which was due to expire Sunday anyway. Now, however, Suter is in Minnesota, former Flyers defenseman Matt Carle is in Tampa Bay, and teams that went into the summer looking for a defenseman could find themselves pitching hard to the Coyotes.
Not that it'll be easy, according to ESPN analyst Pierre LeBrun.
"It would take a real good offer to pry Yandle out of Phx," LeBrun posted on his Twitter account (@Real_ESPNLeBrun) on Thursday, "but if the Yotes do move him, guessing East Conf where several teams have interest."
One of those teams could be Philadelphia. The Flyers just lost Carle to the Lightning, and would certainly love to replace his 38 points with more than Luke Schenn (acquired in the trade for James van Riemsdyk). Getting Yandle would certainly be an upgrade. It's uncertain what assets the Flyers would offer the Coyotes, but then again, the Flyers are also in the hunt for Rick Nash, so it stands to reason that they have some sort of attractive trade package in mind.
The Bruins don't make as much sense, as they have a full complement of defensemen that will likely include highly-touted prospect Dougie Hamilton, but they do have the contract of Tim Thomas to offer in trade. That makes little on-ice sense for the Coyotes - partly because Mike Smith was the star of Phoenix's run to the Western Conference finals, and partly because Thomas plans to sit out the next year anyway - but if Phoenix's financial situation remains uncertain, it could make good financial sense for the Bruins. Thomas' contract has a salary cap hit of $5 million, but just $3 million in real salary, a bargain for a team looking to reach the salary cap floor. If Phoenix is forced to go into rebuilding mode, a combination of Thomas' contract plus a combination of draft picks could be a worthwhile deal.
Phoenix's financial situation is the key. Team captain Shane Doan, an unrestricted free agent, is waiting until Monday - a key date in the planned acquisition of the team by former San Jose Sharks executive Greg Jamison. If a group of Glendale citizens are successful in getting a referendum on the ballot to challenge Jamison's lease agreement with the city, then Doan, who has played his entire 16-year career with the Coyotes franchise - dating back to his rookie year with the then-Winnipeg Jets - could look to go elsewhere.
If that happens, the Coyotes will have lost their top two scorers from last seasons's Pacific Division champions, and there might not be as much purpose in keeping Yandle around. If the ownership situation remains uncertain, a package of draft picks and prospects could be the right move for Phoenix, as a means of regrouping and rebuilding.
It may indeed take a "real good offer" to get Yandle, as LeBrun reported, but what that means could change significantly in the next few days.
