Arizona Coyotes Sign Alex Goligoski

Clearly pleased by the welcoming party in Arizona during his two-day stay, the Coyotes were able to lock up defenceman Alex Goligoski with a five-year deal, according to ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun.

The Coyotes acquired the rights to Goligoski from the Dallas Stars in exchange for a 2016 fifth round pick. The trade and signing are the first major moves by new Coyotes general manager, John Chayaka, an analytics expert.

[RELATED: Arizona Coyotes Acquire Rights to Alex Goligoski]

“I think he’s the perfect fit for our team with where we’re at with our young group of forwards,” said Chayka according to Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston. “They need someone who plays the new age of defense, which is transition to offense and getting the puck up to our forwards and joining the rush and supporting the attack. Those are some of the key variables that we see that he brings to the table. And with a team that over the last few years has not been good in defensive metrics, he’s got real history of being strong defensively and good on penalty kill and being used in all situations. He’s a very versatile player that our coaching staff would really enjoy.”

Goligoski’s new contract is a five-year deal worth $27.5 million – giving him an AAV of just under $5.5 million per season.

In 562 career regular season games, Goligoski has shown the ability to get in on the offence collecting 277 points (55g-222a) to go along with his plus-68 career rating with Pittsburgh and Dallas.

The 30-year-old is coming off a season where he amassed 37 points (5g-32a) while playing all 82 games for the Stars. He’s the puck moving defenceman that Arizona was looking for this offseason – one more piece off Chayka’s checklist.