High Hopes for Matthew Lombardi's Return to Phoenix

While the Phoenix Coyotes played a scrimmage game to about 4,000 Phoenix Coyotes fans Wednesday night, Coyotes’ GMs were hard at work placing the final pieces together for their roster.

Lombardi joins the Coyotes for his second stint in the desert.

On of the final pieces needing to be done before season’s start was the acquisition of a center who could offer a proven record of scoring. For Phoenix, the deal would ultimately be one that featured a former Coyote.

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Matthew Lombardi, who has battled a neck injury an injury which sidelined him for all but two games during his 2010-’11 season with the Nashville Predators, looks forward to returning to his form of that of his first time in Arizona.

Expressing excitement about the trade, Lombardi and fans will remember his first stint with the desert club.

From 2008 til 2010, Lombardi recorded 24 goals and 45 assists in 97 games; posting his career best season in 2009-’10 with 53 points.

While Lombardi is still struggling to find his bearings after his injury, Maloney hopes a change of scenery, a familiar scenery, will hopefully spark some offensive in the 30-year old forward.

A spark the defensive-minded Coyotes desperately need out of Lombardi in this shorten season.

Author information

Ed ChavezBased out of Arizona, Ed Chavez joined The Hockey Writers to cover the Phoenix Coyotes. In addition to THW, Ed also contributes to sister site, Sunbelt Hockey Journal, covering hockey in the desert and the Coyotes geared Five for Howling. Follow Ed on twitter, @edmchvzTwitter

This article was originally published at: The Hockey Writers.