from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet,

- Andrew Barroway attended Arizona’s win over Philadelphia, poised to become majority owner of the Coyotes on New Year’s Eve. His first public comments could come later this week, so we should get a clearer idea of what happens to the team’s roster. The NHL isn’t commenting on this, but a few sources indicated commissioner Gary Bettman would not approve the sale until more of the money from it was put back into the team, especially since the current owners are maintaining a minority position.

- This may not, however, affect Maloney’s immediate decision-making. The organization is realistic about where this season is going, so it doesn’t make a ton of sense to spend extra now.

Other clubs believe the decision is already made to trade Antoine Vermette, as the team is unwilling to meet his asking price (in the $6-million range). There’s a lot of interest, obviously, with several of the usual suspects already mentioned, such as Boston, Detroit and St. Louis. Saw New Jersey mentioned, but does it really make sense for the Devils to give up the young assets/draft picks Arizona would want?

- This is guesswork, but two other teams who might make sense? Chicago and Montreal. The Blackhawks do have talented young players/prospects and Vermette would be a perfect fit, a versatile forward who could flit around the lineup. As for the Canadiens, it fits Marc Bergevin’s profile. Look at the UFAs he’s traded for: Bryan Allen, Sergei Gonchar, Michael Ryder, Thomas Vanek and Mike Weaver. He pursued Raffi Torres in 2013, but said no when he didn’t like the price.

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