Arizona Coyotes and Jack McBain Avoid Arbitration

The Arizona Coyotes and center Jack McBain narrowly avoid arbitration, agreeing on a two-year $1.6m AAV. McBain played all 82 games for the Coyotes last season, putting up a stat line of 12-14-26, playing largely a bottom-six physical tone-setter role for the team. The 23-year-old massive forward played himself into a key role for Arizona, both last season and moving forward. McBain quickly became a fan favorite due to his physical play, putting up 304 hits while playing incredibly well along the boards in a role that only grows more crucial as the team moves toward competitiveness. With the additions the team made in the offseason and the promotion of top prospect Logan Cooley, he likely maintain his bottom-six role where he can be a tone-setter and chip in offensively. The Coyotes originally acquired Jack McBain at the 2022 NHL Trade Deadline for a second round pick from the Minnesota Wild, who drafted him in the third round of 2018 with the 63rd overall pick.

The original asks in the arbitration were two years, $1.2 million by the Coyotes, and one year, $2.25 million by McBain. The Coyotes got the term they wanted while both parties met in the middle with AAV. After this signing, the Coyotes are at 49 out of 50 contracts with RFA Jan Jenik left to sign, which makes either a roster player trade likely or something similar, as the team will want to open up roster maneuverability for both future signings or ability to claim players off waivers.