While the goalie market heats up on the trade rumor mill there is one netminder that appears to be staying put- Arizona Coyotes goalie Karel Vejmelka.
The 25-year-old has burst onto the scene this season for the Coyotes and has been supplying a very bad team with some very good goaltending. So far in 24 appearances he’s posted a .905 save percentage and appears set to become the number one starter in the desert for the foreseeable future.
The 6-foot-3 southpaw was originally drafted in the fifth round by the Nashville Predators and has played his professional career mostly in his native Czech Republic. He’s currently making just over league minimum on his contract and is a pending restricted free agent.
Vejmelka is likely to sign a three-year deal in Arizona for somewhere close to $2 million on the cap. Given the team’s history of moving out talent, it’s great to see for Coyotes fans that the team is willing to commit to players moving forward.
As the goaltender is expected to re-sign in the desert, there are a number of his colleagues who are expected to be traded. These include Braden Holtby of Dallas, Martin Jones of Philadelphia, Joonas Korpisalo of Columbus, Anton Forsberg of Ottawa, Chris Driedger of Seattle, Marc-Andre Fleury of Chicago and Alexandar Georgiev of New York.
Photo credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
