Riberio head’s west to the Coyotes.
The Phoenix Coyotes managed to make a pretty big splash in free agency on Friday afternoon by signing center Mike Ribeiro to a four-year, $22 million dollar contract.
The contract also has a partial no-trade clause.
Ribeiro, 32, spent the 2012-13 season with the Washington Capitals and had one of his best seasons to date scoring 13 goals to go with 36 assists in 48 games. It was the second time in his career he averaged more than a point-per-game during a season.
He’s a pretty big presence on the power play, where he’s done most of his damage offensively the past few years, and will instantly be the Coyotes’ top offensive threat down the middle.
Still, that’s a pretty big investment for the Coyotes given his age and the fact his goal-scoring numbers should be expected to drop a little in 2013 (he’s not going to maintain the 20 percent shooting percentage he had last season in Washington).
