As has been speculated over the past few days, veteran winger Radim Vrbata has signed with the Arizona Coyotes, the team officially announced this morning. The deal is for one year and just $1MM in base salary. Although it has not been confirmed, it has been reported by many that the deal will also include performance bonuses. Regardless, the deal stands to be a potential bargain for an elite scorer, as GM John Chayka adds yet another shrewd move to his off-season resume.
One of the more surprising players left on the market, Vrbata has now been scooped up and will return to the Coyotes for his third stint (and seventh season) with the team. Although his 2015-16 campaign with the Vancouver Canucks was forgettable, Vrbata is just one year removed from a 63-point season and had several comparable years as a member of the Coyotes. Arizona hopes that the veteran of nearly one thousand NHL games can bring some consistent scoring to the young team and make up for some of the locker room presence lost by the recent release of Vrbata’s former teammate, Antoine Vermette.
Ranked 27th in our Top 50 Free Agents list, Vrbata’s signing takes one more impact free agent off the board and leaves only Kris Russell and Jiri Hudler as top-end players yet to be signed.