Hanzal to undergo back surgery, likely done for season
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Coyotes center Martin Hanzal will have surgery on his back next week. General manager Don Maloney said the procedure would "in all likelihood finish his season" and called the chances of Hanzal returning "remote."
Hanzal also had back surgery to repair a herniated disc in July of 2008. He will see the same specialist, Dr. Robert Watkins, in Los Angeles. Maloney said Hanzal has been battling the same injury for the past 2-3 years, noting that the Coyotes shut down Hanzal for the last four games of the 2013-14 season for the same reason.
"It's gotten progressively worse," Maloney said. "We can't keep doing this. We have to find a solution."
Maloney said he is not concerned that the surgery will impact Hanzal in the future. He expects Hanzal to make a full recovery, but doubts will linger about a player who has had two back procedures and hasn't played more than 65 games in a full season since 2009-10.
Like many Coyotes, Hanzal had been rumored in some potential trades, but that clearly will not happen now. Hanzal is signed for two more seasons at average annual salary of $3.5 million.
Maloney said Thursday that prospect Viktor Tikhonov has expressed interest in returning to North America. The Coyotes own his rights until July 1, when he can become an unrestricted free agent.
Maloney said one of the Coyotes' European scouts just watched Tikhonov play two games and the team likes how his game has grown. The Coyotes selected Tikhonov with their second pick (28th) overall in 2008 (Mikkel Boedker was taken eighth overall).
SHARKS (28-20-8) at COYOTES (20-28-7)
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Where: Gila River Arena, Glendale
TV: FOX Sports Arizona
Season series: Tied, 1-1
Injuries: Arizona F Mikkel Boedker (splenectomy) is out indefinitely. C Martin Hanzal (back) will undergo surgery next week and is likely out for the year. C Joe Vitale (upper body) is day to day and could play this weekend. F Alex Bolduc (mid-body) is day to day. San Jose F Raffi Torres (knee), F Mike Brown (lower body), D Justin Braun (hand), F Tye McGinn (upper body) and F Danil Tarasov (undisclosed) are on injured reserve. D Marc-Edouard Vlasic (upper body) is day to day.
Quick facts: San Jose just dropped all three games of a three-game homestand (0-2-1) while allowing 14 goals. ... C Logan Couture has two goals and four assists during a four-game point streak. His goal against the Capitals was his 20th of the season, making him one of seven players to have at least 20 in each of the past five seasons.
After playing 61 games with the Coyotes in 2008-09 (eight goals, 16 points), Tikhonov, 26, spent the following two seasons with the club's AHL affiliate in San Antonio before returning to Russia when he couldn't reach an agreement with the Coyotes. He has spent the last four seasons with SKA Saint Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League. He has eight goals and 24 points through 45 games this season.
Tikhonov's agent, Thomas Lynn, said nothing can happen with his client until June 1, when his KHL contract expires. After that, the Coyotes have one month to sign him before he becomes unrestricted.
"Vik has made it clear he liked the way he was treated by Coach (Dave) Tippett, and he is open to returning to Phoenix," Lynn said. "But several teams have contacted me just to make sure I'm still his guy and to let them know before he signs somewhere, so it could be a bit of a rodeo."
Lynn said Tikhonov, the grandson of famed Soviet coach Viktor Vasilyevich Tikhonov, has bulked up considerably since playing for the Coyotes. He is listed at 6-feet, 182 pounds. Lynn insisted the plight of the Russian ruble isn't influencing Tikhonov's desire to return. He grew up in Los Gatos, California and Lexington, Kentucky and just wants to return to North America.
Lynn said the upcoming World Championships in the Czech Republic in May will be a key showcase for Tikhonov, since numerous NHL scouts and executives will be in attendance.
Newest Coyote Mark Arcobello is just the third player in NHL history to play for four different teams (Edmonton, Nashville, Pittsburgh, Arizona) in a single season, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
"I'm almost getting used to it now," said Arcobello, who arrived in the Valley on Wednesday night after the Coyotes claimed him off waivers from the Penguins. "I just lived in hotels."
With Hanzal out for the season, Joe Vitale still nursing an upper body injury and Antoine Vermette likely to be traded, the Coyotes need bodies at the center position. Arcobello was centering a line with former Edmonton teammate Sam Gagner and wing Lucas Lessio at Thursday's practice.
Arcobello will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season.
Maloney said two factors are having a chilling effect on trades as the March 2 deadline approaches: So many teams are bumping up against the salary cap ceiling, and so many teams are concerned with how the struggling the Canadian dollar will impact next season's cap.
"That's what made this Winnipeg-Buffalo deal so impressive," said Maloney, referring to the blockbuster trade that sent forward Evander Kane to the Sabres. "They found a way to do it."
Here's what Maloney said when asked if the Coyotes had interest in Kane.
"Any time there's a young player available in this league at that age, you have to know that we're interested. I don't want to get into specifics, but we're always interested in good players; top players."
-- Forward Brandon McMillan was claimed off waivers by Vancouver and packed up his equipment at Gila River Arena on Thursday. McMillan is a Richmond, British Columbia, native, so this is a homecoming for him. "Awesome situation for me going back home," he said. Canucks coach Willie Desjardins coached McMillan on Canada's 2010 World Junior Championship team that won silver in Saskatchewan.
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