Could Pat Maroon interest the Arizona Coyotes?

It’s not everyday that a Stanley Cup champion is available in free agency, especially one that your club attempted to sign just one season earlier.

But that is the case with veteran winger Pat Maroon, who received a two-year contract offer from the Arizona Coyotes last summer.

Maroon opted to return to his hometown of St. Louis, and the decision paid off hugely for the 31-year-old, seeing him lift the Cup and earn himself the piece of silverware that every hockey player in the NHL desires.

Having earned ten goals and 28 total points in 74 regular season games with the Blues, Maroon went on to score three goals and four assists en route to the cup. Now, Maroon’s future is now unclear once again.

So, could he be of interest to Coyotes general manager John Chayka a year after he attempted to bring him to the desert?

Selected in the sixth round (161st overall) of the 2007 Draft by the Philadelphia Flyers, Maroon has carved out a nice career for himself to date.

He has earned a shade under a point every other game (206 points in 449 GP) during his career and has become a valuable depth option in the league, averaging 14:10 on the ice with the Blues.

The Coyotes have struggled with offence in recent years, but look set to have a much stronger campaign after adding Phil Kessel and Carl Soderberg to the line-up.

Maroon, who cost just $1.75 million last season, could be an intriguing option for the Coyotes to consider if they feel he can be an upgrade on the players currently competing for a role in their bottom six.

Had Maroon played for the Coyotes last season and earned the same season points totals, he would have ranked as the seventh-highest points producer.

He would be sitting five points behind Richard Panik, but would be ahead of Brad Richardson, Lawson Crouse and Christian Fischer.

Michael Grabner and Conor Garland also had fewer points totals but played in far fewer games than Maroon, so could have potentially contributed a lot more.

If Maroon is willing to accept a deal in a similar range to the one he signed with the Blues, the Coyotes could reasonably give him some serious consideration.

He would be a veteran presence that could help contribute on the bottom end of the line-up.

He isn’t likely to be a huge upgrade, but any slight edge he could give is something that Chayka will undoubtedly already be aware of.

There’s plenty of time left before the start of the new NHL season and there’s no telling how the Arizona Coyotes roster will change in that time.

But if Chayka still has interest in Maroon, he could be worth a PTO at the very least in training camp if no other offers are forthcoming.