Andrew Ladd To Play 2021-22 Season

Veteran winger Andrew Ladd is fully healthy and expects to play for the Arizona Coyotes this upcoming season, according to The Athletic's Eric Duhatschek. The Coyotes acquired him along with some draft picks from the New York Islanders earlier this off-season in a cap dump trade.

Ladd was limited to just one game this season and it was with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. In it, he was held off the scoresheet. He last played in the NHL with the Islanders during the 2019-20 season. In four regular season games, he scored a goal. He also played a game with them during the postseason, but failed to record a point. He primarily was a member of the Sound Tigers that season, as he scored 11 goals and had 14 points in 34 games.

Ladd's last full season in the league came during the 2017-18 season with the Islanders. In 73 games, he scored 12 goals and had 29 points. After a very strong tenure as captain of the Winnipeg Jets, Ladd just did not work out with the Islanders. Ongoing injuries and a drop in offensive production are to blame. However, with a rebuilding team like the Coyotes, he could benefit from a fresh start.

Ladd has two more years left on his contract and will have a cap hit of $5.5 million. It will be interesting to see if he can land himself a spot in their bottom-six. The Coyotes also added Loui Eriksson and Antoine Roussel this off-season, so they each will be fighting for a job with the team.

In 950 career NHL games between the Carolina Hurricanes, Atlanta Thrashers, Jets, Chicago Blackhawks and Islanders, Ladd has 249 goals, 289 assists and 538 points. If he remains somewhat healthy these next two seasons, he should be able to reach 1,000 games, 250 goals and maybe even 300 assists.

Nonetheless, it's great to hear that Ladd is feeling 100%.