All-Star Mike Smith hasn’t considered waiving his no-trade clause as the Arizona Coyotes sink lower and lower in the Western Conference playoff race.
With just 16 wins and 38 points in 48 games, Arizona is expectedly not ready to contend. With a young roster that includes a promising core of Dylan Strome, Max Domi, and Jakob Chychrun, the future looks bright. But, for now, the present will include a ton of losses. While losing stings, Smith admitted he’s happy with his current situation with the Coyotes and isn’t look to be dealt.
“I haven’t even – I haven’t gone there,” Smith told Sarah McLellan of the Arizona Republic. “I haven’t gone there.”
I think I want to be in a position to have a chance to win before my career’s over, but I feel like this is moving in the right direction. Things can turn around fairly quickly here. I want to be a big part of that.”
The 33-year-old has done all he can do to keep the Coyotes competitive, posting an 11-13-5 record in 30 games with a 2.85 goals against average and a .917 save percentage. However, if he was available via trade, I can’t imagine interest would be overly high. He’s still got two years with $11 million+ remaining on his contract. For an average starter making that kind of money, unless the Yotes’ eat a significant portion of his salary, expect Smith to stick around for the long haul.
