Coyotes send Ekman-Larsson, Garland to Vancouver, draft Dylan Guenther in first round
Garland #Garland
The Coyotes made crystal clear on Friday their eyes are on the future in building a winning team.
Just a few hours before the start of the NHL draft, the Coyotes traded team captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson and dynamic forward Conor Garland to the Vancouver Canucks for the ninth overall pick in the draft and three veterans heading into the final years of their contracts.
Arizona also received a second-round pick in 2022 and a seventh-round pick in 2023, while agreeing to take on 12 percent of Ekman-Larsson’s remaining salary, Canucks General Manager Jim Benning confirmed.
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That’s six years left on Ekman-Larsson’s contract, at an average annual value of $8.25 million.
With their newly acquired first-round selection, the Coyotes went with forward Dylan Guenther, who most recently played for the Edmonton Oil Kings in the Western Hockey League. The 6-foot-1, 175-pound 18-year old averaged two points per game in 2020-21 with 12 goals and 12 assists in 12 games played.
Guenther won a gold medal with Team Canada at the 2021 Under-18 World Championship, scoring four goals with three assists in the tournament. He was named WHL Rookie of the Year in 2019-20 after recording 59 points in 58 games.
The Coyotes have stocked up on draft assets with deals this week, and now have eight total picks in this year’s draft. They have three second-round picks this year — the second round starts on Saturday morning — and five in 2022, a draft they consider to be more prospect-rich than this year’s.
Arizona didn’t have a first-round pick last year or this year due to sanctions imposed by the NHL against the previous front office regime for violating the league’s Combine Testing Policy. Now they do, and in doing so stayed with the apparent course to take on bigger contracts and help teams clear salary cap space in exchange for draft assets.
The Canucks sent 36-year-old forward Loui Eriksson, 35-year-old center Jay Beagle and 31-year-old forward Antoine Roussel to the Coyotes in the deal. None put up more than five total points (Beagle) or played more than 35 games (Roussel) last season.
So ends the tenure and captaincy of Ekman-Larsson, who missed 10 games due to injury last season and produced 24 points, 21 on assists. A first-round draft pick in 2009, Ekman-Larsson, now 30, spent 11 seasons with the Coyotes and the past three as team captain.
“On behalf of the entire organization, I would like to thank Oliver for everything that he has done for the Coyotes the past 10 years,” said Coyotes General Manager Bill Armstrong in a statement officially announcing the trade. “He is a tremendous player and person and we wish him and Conor the best of luck in the future.
“We are very pleased to acquire the ninth overall draft choice in this year’s NHL Draft along with Loui, Antoine and Jay. Loui and Jay are both Stanley Cup champions and along with Antoine, they are all solid veterans who will provide us with great leadership and experience.”
Rumors flew of a possible trade involving Ekman-Larsson last offseason, as Armstrong had just started in his new position and was open to making a deal. But the Swedish defenseman’s camp allowed the Coyotes to only work out a deal with Boston and Vancouver, since he had a no-movement clause in his contract.
Nothing materialized because Armstrong and the other teams couldn’t agree to a deal, and Ekman-Larsson remained in Arizona where he said he wanted to be all along. But this offseason, Vancouver and Arizona worked it out.
Former Coyotes forward Conor Garland, on what the Coyotes organization meant to him
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Garland, 25, led the Coyotes with 27 assists this past season and scored 12 goals. He was constantly the target of other team’s physical play, but rolled with the punches and became a fan favorite for his hard-nosed style of play and willingness to trade verbal jabs with opposing players.
He overcame a late-season injury and finished it on a four-game point streak.
Garland earned a spot on Team USA in the hockey world championships in May and June in Latvia, and helped lead the national team to a bronze medal.
Both Arizona and Vancouver missed the playoffs last season, with the Canucks finishing last in the North Division.
Get in touch with Jose Romero at Jose.Romero@gannett.com. Find him on Twitter at @RomeroJoseM.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Coyotes send Ekman-Larsson, Garland to Vancouver, draft Dylan Guenther in first round