The Arizona Coyotes lost their last game - a shutout at the hands of last season's Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings, their sixth home defeat in a row - in such spectacular fashion that the team felt the need to hold a 20-minute closed door meeting afterwards, according to a report from Sarah McLellan of azcentral.com.
This came only a night after their shutout loss at the hands of the Calgary Flames, and prompted GM Don Maloney to threaten his players with trades if their play didn't pick up, TSN hockey insider Bob McKenzie reported.
Now, after the loss to the Kings has dropped the Coyotes to 10-14-3 and sixth place in the Pacific Division, Maloney may indeed be following through on his seemingly idle threat, according to TheFourthPeriod.com.
It's believed Maloney is willing to take calls on several players, including defensemen Keith Yandle, Zbynek Michalek and David Schlemko, and forwards Antoine Vermette, Martin Erat, Martin Hanzal and Mikkel Boedker.
Maloney told TFP last season that he had received calls on Yandle and had listened with curiosity, but wouldn't pull the trigger on the deal unless the offer were just right. Yandle, a supremely offensively talented defenseman, currently the leads the team with 18 points - which, while impressive, is a clear indication of the scoring deficiency ailing Arizona.
The Coyotes are currently 24th in goals per game (2.3) and 25th in goals against (3.1).
They could ship out a key piece like Yandle if it means a number of picks and/or prospects come back in return, or even better, a top-six scoring forward.
The same can be said for just about every player mentioned above. The Coyotes are a well-rounded team, but lack any superstars or consistent scorers.
The problem for Maloney, and for the fans in Arizona, is that the team's seemingly continuous state of ownership flux means big deals or big contracts are simply unrealistic for the most part.
Until such a time as that major issue gets resolved, shipping players out makes a lot more sense than bringing players in.