Mike Ribeiro enjoyed the best run of his career
when he played for Tippett with the Dallas
Stars. In their two seasons before Tippett was fired by the Stars
in 2009, Ribeiro had 83 points and 78 points, collecting a
career-high 56 assists each seasons. It's part of the reason Tippett
sold general manager Don
Maloney on signing the 33-year-old as a free agent after he had
49 points in 48 games last season with the Washington
Capitals. If Ribeiro is able to recapture the flair he had
playing under Tippett in Dallas, the Coyotes could have a legitimate
playmaking center for the first time since the high-flying teams of
the mid-1990s that featured Keith
Tkachuk and Jeremy
Roenick.
"The big move was signing Mike
Ribeiro. He gives us a legitimate top center," Tippett
said. "He understands the game very well. I think his skill
level is something we didn't have and needed to add to our group.
I've had some real good experience with him. I think he'll be a great
fit for our team."
In 2011-12, Smith's first season with the Coyotes,
the goaltender posted career highs in wins, shutouts, save percentage
and minutes. Last season he took a step back, struggling with some
nagging injuries and failing to make the plays that established him
as a franchise goaltender. His wins dropped from 38 to 15 and his
goals-against average increased from 2.21 to 2.58. Despite a
difficult 2012-13 season, the Coyotes showed their commitment to
Smith by signing him to a six-year, $34 million contract. "Mike
Smith over the past two years has shown us he can play at an
elite level," Maloney told NHL.com. "Last year we
believe there were a lot of factors that led to him having what we
would consider an average season. Between the short season, his
injuries, his contract, we just felt that year was hard on a lot of
goaltenders. We believe Mike can be one of the best goaltenders in
the game. We believe we have the style and infrastructure that can
put him in that category. That includes our style of play and
[goaltending coach] Sean
Burke's tutelage."
With their franchise goaltender signed to a
long-term extension and a veteran blue line, the Coyotes' defense
should continue to be a strong suit, especially under Tippett's
coaching system, which preaches defensive responsibility. But the
offense continues to be a point of concern. In previous seasons,
Phoenix's offense ranked around the middle of the League, providing
just enough scoring to keep a defensively sound squad moving along.
But that offense took a dip in 2012-13 to 21st in the League, a
troubling statistic magnified by the worst power play in the Western
Conference. Ribeiro will help with the power play and overall
scoring, but it's clear someone else will have to step up to provide
additional punch. Maloney and Tippett have mentioned they will look
to a strong incoming rookie class to help, but it's clear some
veterans will have to ramp up their offensive contributions. Since
being drafted No. 8 by Phoenix in 2008, Mikkel Boedker has been
looked to as a potential source of scoring from the wing. His 2011-12
season gave the impression the Dane was poised to break out. Boedker
tied a career high with 11 goals before getting eight points and two
game-winning goals in the Coyotes' run to the conference final. With
five points in his first five games last season, Boedker looked as if
he would take the next step. Boedker had 16 points through 21 games
but struggled in the second half; in his final 27 games he had three
goals and 10 points, including a final 10 games that saw him get two
assists with a minus-3 rating. For the past few seasons the Coyotes
have relied on a smart, veteran core headed by Shane
Doan, who over the years has established himself as one of the
best captains in hockey. During that time, Phoenix was able to
stockpile a collection of prospects that ranks among the best in the
game. After the team missed the playoffs last season, the time of
waiting for those prospects to develop appears to be over.
"I think there are some guys who are going
to come in and really push for jobs," Tippett said. "We've
got some young players there who are ready to push. This will be the
most competitive training camp in my four years in Phoenix. We're
really looking forward to see the levels these young players can get
to."
The team firmly has established which players will
make up the third and fourth forward lines, so it's likely that a
number of prospects will get a long look toward getting time on one
of the top two scoring lines. Despite being 18, Domi will get a good
look in training camp, along with a number of top-flight prospects,
including Lucas
Lessio and Chris
Brown, each coming off an outstanding season. The Phoenix back
end is firmly established, but Tippett and Maloney said they are open
to adding a rookie or two to that mix. In the summer of 2012,
Phoenix's leading scorer, Ray
Whitney, left to sign a two-year contract with the Dallas
Stars. At the time, that was a glaring loss for a Coyotes team
that struggled to score goals without the veteran forward. This
summer the Coyotes again lost an important piece, although it wasn't
nearly as big a name. Forward Boyd
Gordon's three-year contract with the Edmonton
Oilers didn't make major news across the hockey world, but he
could prove to be a costly loss in Phoenix, where he spent the
previous two seasons. Gordon never put up huge offensive numbers for
the Coyotes, although he did score a career-high eight goals in
2011-12. However, he was the embodiment of Tippett's system, a
responsible defensive forward who consistently could win faceoffs and
battles while displaying a very strong hockey IQ. He also was a key
contributor on the penalty kill. The Coyotes were sad to see Gordon
go, and they'll need to see if another veteran (Kyle
Chipchura) or perhaps a newer player (Rob
Klinkhammer) can fill the void. "Gordon is a player we
didn't want to lose," Tippett said. "But Chipchura
had a very good season for us last year so we feel he can fit that
role on the fourth line."
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