The Arizona Coyotes have acquired F Carl Soderberg from the Colorado Avalanche is exchange for D Kevin Connauton and a third round pick.
Soderberg is a bottom six center coming off a career year at age 33. He has rebounded well from an awful 2016-17, when he scored just six goals with eight assists and was a -26, as the Avalanche were the worst team in the league. He had a career high in goals this year. He also finished 24th in Selke voting (he got one 4th place vote).
Soderberg, 33, scored 23 goals with 26 assists for 49 points in 82 games for the Avalanche this year. In his NHL career for the Avs and Boston Bruins, Soderberg has scored 86 goals with 159 assists for 245 points in 482 games.
The Avalanche already had the most amount of cap space in the league, and now they have more space, about $38.9 million. They have just five forwards under contract, seven RFAs, they only have one goalie under contract for next year, and they have five UFAs (including goalie Semyon Varlamov). One of those RFAs, Mikko Rantanen, could get up to $9 million a year. The Avs are also interested in free agent superstar Artemi Panarin. It might seem like they have a lot of cap space, but they could be out of it once the offseason concludes. Connauton is a decent depth defenseman, and getting him could mean the end of Patrik Nemeth (UFA) in Colorado.
Connauton, 29, scored one goal with seven assists for eight points in 50 games for the Coyotes this year. In his NHL career for the Coyotes, Columbus Blue Jackets and Dallas Stars, Connauton has scored 27 goals with 49 assists for 76 points in 310 games.
CarterHud 