Sarah McLellan

azcentral sports

Preseason predictions labeled Antoine Vermette the Coyotes' third-line center, and that made sense.

Mike Ribeiro was penciled into the top of the depth chart upon arrival, while Martin Hanzal was still filling out a top-six spot next to wingman Radim Vrbata.

Plus, the Coyotes needed someone to fill the faceoff and penalty-kill responsibilities of the position once Boyd Gordon walked last summer in free agency, and Vermette fit the bill.

But the Coyotes certainly didn't complain when over the course of the past season Vermette flipped the script and became the team's leading goal scorer in addition to being its best defensive center.

"I'm pleased with the way I played," he said. "I think if you look at the statistics, sometimes it doesn't show. It shows a little bit but not as much as you might think. I try to grow my game, different areas of the game. It was a successful year for me, but it's a bad taste. You want to do it and win and ultimately, you want to be successful as a team."

Vermette's right, though. Statistics don't usually tell the entire story, but the ones he amassed this season are flattering. Aside from posting a team-high 24 goals, Vermette tallied three shorthanded goals and led all forwards with an average of 19:12 in ice time, an average of 26.5 shifts per game and 71 blocked shots.

League-wide, Vermette's 56.4 faceoff win percentage ranked in the top 10 and he finished second in total faceoffs taken (1,783) and faceoffs won (1,005). His 527 faceoff wins on the road were tops in the NHL.

"He competed hard in a lot of areas for us," coach Dave Tippett said.

This performance came at a favorable time for Vermette as he can start negotiating a contract extension with the Coyotes July 1. After the 2014-15 season, Vermette is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent.

"I like it here," Vermette said. "I haven't thought a lot about it. It's really quick, but we'll see what's going to present itself and we'll listen."

Based on this last season, Vermette is most likely in line for a raise from his current $3.75 million price tag but whether the Coyotes can accommodate that remains to be seen. The team, however, appears to be interested in keeping Vermette.

"Yeah, we'd like to do something," General Manager Don Maloney said. "But as we've learned, whether we're able to do something, that's another story."

What probably needs to be sorted out is whether it's fair to expect Vermette to continue to produce at this level. He's proved reliable, playing in every game in every season since 2009-10, but that was the last time the 31-year-old topped 20 goals until this past one.

"I don't think it was out of my capacity," Vermette said about his season.

Still, like many others, Vermette's offense dried up down the stretch. He went goalless in his last nine games, but he was also feeling sick during that time.

"I think he got fatigued a little bit," Tippett said. "With Hanzal being out, we relied on him a ton."

But Vermette didn't mind the extra work. In fact, he seems to thrive on it.

"I take a lot of pride in what I'm doing," he said, "and I try to do as much as I can."