Arizona Coyotes, Mikkel Boedker set to discuss contract

Sarah McLellan | azcentral sports

Ever since Coyotes goalie Mike Smith hit the operating table to repair a core muscle injury earlier this month, team brass has been searching for a possible addition to help solidify the position until Smith returns in two months.

Considering the length of Smith’s absence and how vital a goalie is to a team’s success, this research project is definitely worthwhile.

But it should also be a priority to explore whether the Coyotes can retain one of their current players beyond this season.

Winger Mikkel Boedker and the Coyotes are eligible to sign a contract extension Jan. 1 after the two sides agreed to a one-year, $3.75 million deal last summer.

During that five-month negotiation, a long-term commitment was discussed but the idea was ultimately scrapped in favor of a bridge contract that Boedker signed only days after electing for salary arbitration.

“We have not had any meaningful dialogue at all, quite frankly, since his one-year contract,” General Manager Don Maloney said. “So we’ll start up in January and see where we’re at.”

What will make these talks unlike any of the previous deliberations is Boedker’s impending status as an unrestricted free agent. The 26-year-old has the potential to sign anywhere in the league if he’s without a deal on July 1, an option earned through tenure that tends to increase contract values.

“I’m optimistic that we’ll be able to do something that’s good for Mikkel and good for us,” Maloney said. “… He’s an important part of our team, and hopefully we can do something that makes sense for both of us.”

Boedker certainly hasn’t disappointed this season.

He leads the Coyotes in goals with 11 – six of which came on a pair of hat tricks – and ranks second in points (23). His three game-winners are the second-most on the team.

“Once he kind of got up and going, he’s been real good for us,” coach Dave Tippett said. “You watch him day-to-day in games and practices, he’s just a really good player.”

What’s more, Boedker has turned in these offensive contributions while taking on a larger leadership role. He recently donned an ‘A’ on his sweater as an alternate captain when injuries pulled captain Shane Doan and center Martin Hanzal out of the lineup.

“It was a privilege, and it’s not something you get to do every day,” Boedker said. “Obviously, you have to earn it. It was a lot of fun. It was a lot different looking down on your jersey and seeing an ‘A.’ It means that you’re a leader.”

Clearly, Boedker fits the bill as a top-six forward who offers speed, skill and a wicked wrist shot.

But it also seems like the Coyotes have counted on him to be a role model and an instigator for improvement amid the team’s rebuilding effort – tasks that Boedker has embraced this season.

Figuring out if the Coyotes can make this arrangement last should be the next step.

“It’s going to sort itself out,” Boedker said. “I don’t know where the team stands and where I stand. There's been no conversations. I haven’t heard anything. I’ve just been focused on trying to help the team and trying to make sure that I could help them as much as possible and obviously help myself become a better player.”

Ice chip

The Coyotes signed prospect winger Conor Garland to a three-year, entry-level contract Wednesday.

Garland, 19, was drafted in the fifth round, 123rd overall, earlier this year by the Coyotes. He leads the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League in points (80) after tallying 21 goals and 59 assists in 33 games.

Reach The Heat Index at sarah.mclellan@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8276. Follow her at twitter.com/azc_mclellan.