GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Coyotes made the first major roster cut of the preseason on Sunday, assigning 15 players to the Tucson Roadrunners of the American Hockey League, returning right wing Nick Merkley to his junior team in the Western Hockey League and releasing center Zach Boychuk.
Among the players assigned to Tucson are left wings Brendan Perlini and Michael Bunting, centers Tyler Gaudet and Ryan MacInnis and right wings Conor Garland and Henrik Samuelsson.
Also sent to Tucson were goalies Adin Hill and Marek Langhamer, defensemen Kyle Wood, Justin Hache and Dysin Mayo, left wings Eric Sellect and Garret Ross, center Chris Mueller and right wing Craig Cunningham.
The cuts left 32 players on the roster -- three goaltenders, 13 defensemen and 16 forwards. The 32 includes unsigned restricted free agent wing Tobias Rieder and defenseman Jarred Tinordi, who is on suspension due to substance abuse. The roster must be trimmed to 23 by Oct. 11.
Perlini was the team's top draft pick in 2014, but he struggled through a rough season in his final year of junior hockey with Niagara in the OHL, and management is looking for him to rebuild confidence in the AHL. Gaudet played 14 games with the Coyotes last season, and Cunningham has played 29 games over the past two seasons.
The Coyotes have three more preseason games before opening their season at home against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, Oct. 15. They have road games at Vancouver on Monday night and Calgary on Wednesday before hosting San Jose in the preseason finale on Friday at Gila River Arena.
