Free Wheeler?
The player to the left is Blake Wheeler, a top 5 pick by the Phoenix Coyotes the year Edmonton picked Dubnyk and Schremp later in the first round. Wheeler is turning pro and this article tells us he may not end up in Phoenix.
Since the Oilers spent much of the early part of the decade drafting every Coke Machine possible, is Blake Wheeler a possible target? Phoenix has 30 days and then it’s a free-for-all. Wheeler is from Minnesota so one imagines a team like the Wild might have the inside track if Wheeler doesn’t sign with the 99s.
This is probably one of those cases where it may not make sense for Phoenix to sign him- they’ll get the #35 pick in the 2008 draft if he signs elsewhere, will they not?
wow, nice vert.
Gretzky will get him.
I didn’t read anything in the link to say that Phoenix wasn’t interested in signing Wheeler… Or did I miss something?
From the Minn/St. Paul Tribune:
The Coyotes have made Wheeler a preliminary contract offer, he said. He is the 10th player to leave the Gophers early since the end of the 2005-06 season. Coach Don Lucia had often said he expected Wheeler to turn pro, so his decision was not surprising.
“I just want the opportunity to play in the NHL,” Wheeler said. “It would be great if that was with Phoenix. I’ve developed a relationship with the organization the last three, four years. But [whether it happens] is out of my hands. It’s up to them.”