GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Is Sam Gagner a center or a wing? That question is preoccupying coach Dave Tippett as the Coyotes wind down the preseason.
It's the same question the Edmonton Oilers never fully answered before dealing him to Tampa, which shipped him to Arizona about an hour later, along with B.J. Crombeen, on June 30.
For the first 10 days of training camp, Tippett had Gagner playing exclusively at center. But at Sunday's practice, he moved Gagner to right wing, where he will likely finish the preseason, although he won't play in Wednesday's game against his old team in Edmonton because he is still nursing an upper-body injury.
"I wanted to look at him (at center). I didn't want him to come in thinking he was automatically getting switched to somewhere else," said Tippett, who must weigh more than Gagner's desires when making his decision. "It's how we mix. Do we want a third line checking line where he doesn't really fit? Do we want to put our top six forwards all together? There's lot of factors coming into play here, and he's the one piece of the whole thing where we have to figure out where that goes."
The Coyotes already have Antoine Vermette, Martin Hanzal and Joe Vitale slated to play center. Kyle Chipchura is another possibility who can also play wing, and Justin Hodgman has impressed at camp.
Gagner insists he's happy to play wherever the team needs him, but when pressed, he admits a preference.
"I've played more center in the past, so I feel more comfortable there, but if I played more wing I'd probably get more comfortable there, too," he said. "On the wing, you have to focus on moving your feet away from the puck. At center, that comes more naturally because you are so involved with the play all the time that you have to do it."
There are other duties that come with playing center, however, and at least one person familiar with his game believes Gagner's skill-set is better suited elsewhere.
"You have to be big and tough in this league at center -- especially in the West -- and if you aren't in possession of the puck you've got problems and you'll be chasing all night," said former Oilers assistant GM Rick Olczyk, who now serves in the same position with Carolina. "In terms of physicality down below the circles, and going up and down the ice for 200 feet, I think he's better served being on the wing."
Olczyk raises a valid point. The Western Conference boasts a lot of big, talented, strong-skating centers, and many of them reside in the Pacific Division. Los Angeles has Anze Kopitar, Jarrett Stoll and Jeff Carter. Anaheim has Ryan Getzlaf and Ryan Kesler. San Jose has Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton. Gagner is listed at 5-11, but he is actually shorter.
There are other concerns with playing Gagner at center, too. He's not a bad skater, but he's not a great skater either at a position that either demands that skill or a long reach like Hanzal.
There's also Gagner's lack of prowess in the faceoff circle. He finished last season winning just 46.8 percent of his draws. The two seasons before, he was at 43.9 and 47.6.
"It's not for a lack of effort," Olczyk said. "He'd stay after practice all the time and work on it; watch video. There is nothing questionable about Sam's work ethic and desire to do what's best for the team. It just didn't pan out, and that's OK. It's just not his skill set. I'm not going to be a jump shooter in basketball, either.
"It's not that I think he can't play center. I just think he will be more effective on the wing. I think he'll be a better player and be able to contribute more offensively and defensively on the wing. At the end of the day, he ended up playing more center in Edmonton because the team was limited at that position, and they still are."
Gagner acknowledges the shortcomings of his game in the middle.
"I feel I've worked on those and gotten stronger the last couple of years," he said. "But again, I like the fact that you're so involved at center. I think that's why I was drawn to the center position and why I like playing it because you can make plays all over the ice.
"I feel like I have a good head for the game. I feel like I have more potential to grow at center. I feel like I could grow here and continue to get better at that position."
There's no law that says Tippett must settle on a position before the season opener and keep Gagner there. He could always shift back and forth depending on the team's needs and injuries. But in the preseason, Tippett wanted to evaluate Gagner's abilities without preconceived notions before rendering judgment.
"I wanted to give him a clean slate," Tippett said. "We'll look at him in a lot of different scenarios with a lot of different players until we think there's a place where he fits best."
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