Conor Garland has come a long way in a few years.
He’s gone from being passed over by every team in the NHL in his draft eligible year to being the best and most integral player for the Arizona Coyotes.
If not for a cold spell for himself and his team over the past nine games, Garland would be a point per game player.
As it stands, he’s sitting at 25 points in 32 games and is the subject of a lot of trade talk as the Coyotes flounder out of playoff position and stare down the barrel of a potential rebuild with no first round pick available in the 2021 or 2022 NHL Draft.
A Garland trade would be a mortal blow to the Yotes fanbase.
He has emerged as an easy fan favorite due to his lack of size compared to the size of his heart and hustle.
With trade rumors constantly swirling around a fading Oliver Ekman-Larsson, losing both the last tie to the Shane Doan era in OEL and the only tangible breakout offensive player from years of failed drafts would be a bit too much to handle.
The Arizona Coyotes wore their alternate set 1 jerseys from October 19th, 2019 to January 4th, 2020. Garland dressed and played in all 10 games the jersey was worn. He had 2 goals and 2 assists in the sweater.
His gamer has solid wear for a kachina jersey, however it is a bit light by Garland’s standards.
The right sleeve has a small cut on the end of the sleeve and multiple marks from board burns including one that led to a photomatch. The left sleeve also has a few burns, as well. It also showcases one adhesive repair patch behind a small cut near the end of the sleeve.
The crest of the sweater has a pull right at the bottom of the moon which helped me photomatch the jersey to Garland scoring a goal on November 2nd, 2019. The front hem is littered with piling from side-to-side.
The back has stick marks in both the #8 and the #3 and some loose threads in the nameplate. The bottom right print above the hem has some nice piling as well.
It remains to be seen what will happen with Garland moving forward.
With his team friendly deal expiring at the end of this season, he will be looking for a nice payday. It is unclear whether new Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo is still willing to pony up the cash after all of his major businesses have been hammered by the coronavirus pandemic.
Selfishly, as both a fan and collector I hope he’s a Coyotes player for life.
Realistically, however, the Yotes often find unique ways to disappoint. It wouldn’t surprise me if they find a way to do so yet again with Conor Garland.