Archibald Embraces Trade to Coyotes, Fresh Start

GLENDALE --New Coyotes forwardJosh Archibald arrived at Gila River Arena just before Tuesday's game between Arizona and the Florida Panthers. He didn't play, but he did chat with Head Coach Rick Tocchet briefly.
Archibald, whom the Coyotes acquired via a trade with Pittsburgh on Tuesday, will get to work for Tocchet and his new team at Wednesday's practice. He's excited for a new chapter in his career after playing sparingly for the Penguins this season.
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Trade Details

"A fresh start never hurt anybody," Archibald said. "It's really exciting. I'm glad to be here. It's tough to leave a great organization like Pittsburgh, but I'm really looking forward to getting started here and doing everything I can to help."

Tocchet, an assistant coach for Pittsburgh before coming to the Coyotes this season, coached Archibald last season and likes Archibald's work ethic and his dedication. The Coyotes view Archibald as a player who gets what it takes to be part of a successful team.
"Being with them for the later part of last year, I got to know him quite well," Archibald said of Tocchet. "He's a great guy and a great coach. I'm excited to be here and play under him."

Coyotes General Manager John Chayka made the trade just a few hours before a League-wide freeze on player moves for the holidays. Archibald, the 174th overall pick by Pittsburgh in the 2011 NHL Draft, is under contract through 2018-19.
"We just feel Josh is a guy who knows how to win," Chayka said. "He's been in a winning environment ... We feel he's a guy that works extremely hard in practice and works extremely hard off the ice. His skating is his best attribute. We saw Pittsburgh and Tampa come through here last week and we saw what those teams were able to do with speed."

Archibald played just three games for Pittsburgh this season before the trade, and he was a healthy scratch 12 times. He also has played six games in the American Hockey League this season. Even though he was scratched more than he played with Pittsburgh this season, Archibald said he learned plenty from the many marquee players on the Penguins roster.
"It's definitely been up and down, that's for sure," Archibald said. "There's not too much to say. You can be sitting out, but you're playing with some of the best guys in the world so you're learning things. I think that was the biggest thing for me - just soak everything in as much as I could and learn as much as I could. I think I've accomplished that and hopefully I can bring some of that to this team here ... I looked at Sidney Crosby a lot. He's one of the first guys on the ice and one of the last guys off the ice. His work ethic and what he does, not only on the ice but off the ice, it's pretty outstanding. Just to be able to be associated with him and learn from him was pretty special."
Coyotes fans might remember Archibald from a game he played at Arizona on Feb. 11, 2017. Playing his first game of the season - and just his second NHL game overall - Archibald scored two of his three career goals.

"Hopefully, moving forward, things are as good in this building as they were last year, except I'll be on this side of things," Archibald said with a smile.
Archibald played a total of 10 games for Pittsburgh last season and got to raise the Stanley Cup after the Penguins defeated the Nashville Predators in the finals.
"His passion for the game is a big part of it," Chayka said of why he made the trade. "He's not going to come in and be the savior, but he's going to be a piece that we feel can help us move this thing forward. We've got a lot of young guys and we're trying to surround them with the right people, and the right types of people, and bring the right values to the game. We think he's got it."