Dumba 'Excited' for New Chapter in Arizona After Inking Deal with Coyotes

Defenseman Matt Dumba is already warming up to his new home in the hot desert.

Dumba signed a one-year contract with Arizona on Monday, uprooting his life from the only NHL city he's called home to join a new-look Coyotes team that has added Logan Cooley, Sean Durzi, Jason Zucker, and Alex Kerfoot this offseason. Add to that the return of both Nick Bjugstad and Troy Stecher, who opted to come back to Arizona following their departures at the 2023 trade deadline, and Dumba said he's excited to get to work with his teammates in his new surroundings.

The 29-year-old has spent all 10 seasons of his NHL career in Minnesota, recording 79 goals and 157 assists in 598 career games with the Wild. Though Dumba said it was a tough decision to leave the Twin Cities for The Valley, he said the Coyotes were "always my front-runner."

Thus, he made the decision to head to the Southwest.

"The discussion I had with my girlfriend and with my family about what was right for us, we were weighing the pros and cons, and there weren't too many cons to coming to the desert," he said. "We just needed to take the time to look at everything and be calculated and make sure this is the right fit. We know it is, and I'm so happy to be here."

Multiple points factored into his final decision, including the team's culture under head coach André Tourigny, as well as the direction he perceives the team is heading. He owns a home in Arizona, which also helped, and a former teammate of his also lobbied for the Coyotes during his decision-making process.

Dumba's time in Minnesota overlapped with Bjugstad during the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons, and he said he heard from the Arizona forward "every other day" while weighing his options. In the end, he decided to suit up in The Valley, joining other players that he's already familiar with in the process.

"[Bjugstad] caught me and put the clamps on me at one of the weddings we were at a couple of weeks ago, too. Just always dropping it in my ear," Dumba said with a smile. "It was awesome to see guys really enjoy Arizona. The coaching staff, the style of play that they're growing into; I felt that last year playing against the team.

"I thought they worked tremendously hard, played free, and I saw a lot of good things. I'm very excited to join this squad, and I am fortunate that over the past three years I've gotten to know a lot of guys on the team already, just skating with them in the summer or working out and training with them."

The former first-round pick (7th overall in 2012) said fans can look forward to his style of play and work ethic, something he hopes his teammates will take note of, as well. Dumba averaged 21:17 of ice time last season while appearing in 79 games, and though his numbers on offense dipped slightly last season while placing a bigger emphasis on the defensive side of the game, he has finished with 21-or-more points in four of the last five seasons.

His strongest offensive campaign came in the 2017-18 season, where he recorded 14 goals and 36 assists in a full 82 games played.

Playing alongside the Coyotes' established core of skaters that includes Clayton Keller, Nick Schmaltz, Barrett Hayton, Matias Maccelli, Lawson Crouse, J.J. Moser, and Juuso Valimaki, Dumba said he believes he can find another level in his play.

"I know [the coaches] believe I have more in me," he said. "I've built up my defensive game, they want to see that continue, they want to see that grow, but also I have more to give on the offensive side of the puck and being able to jump into plays. There's a great group of forwards, they're very skilled and can make plays and have vision, so I'm looking to be a part of those rushes and to capitalize on those chances I get."

His game preparation will be a key component of that equation, and Dumba said he plans on leading by example.

"I've fallen in love with the monotony of the regimen and the preparation, and I hope the guys see that, and see that I move as a professional and a guy that wants to get better every day," he said. "I think that mindset can be contagious, so I want to bring that, I want to bring my hard work ethic, and I do believe true leadership is digging in and putting in the work first and setting an example.

"That's where it's going to start."

Though the change of scenery - and hockey sweater - may take a little getting used to, Dumba made one thing perfectly clear on Monday:

He can't wait for his new chapter to kick off in Arizona.

"It'll be a little strange, for sure, reppin the red," Dumba said. "This is a huge opportunity for me, and I'm going put everything into this and give it my all, so I'm excited."