The Arizona Coyotes were in the hunt for the Stanley Cup Playoffs at one point. In fact, they even held one of the two wild card spots in the Western Conference. Unfortunately, they are now well outside of the playoff race. Arizona has lost 11 games in a row, crushing whatever chances they had. And this recent slump will impact the team's NHL Trade Deadline activity.

General manager Bill Armstrong spoke with reporters on Friday about his plans for the March 8 deadline. And he was rather straightforward. He made it clear that fans should not get their hopes up for any major moves. Salvaging their playoff hopes at this point just doesn't make sense for them.

“Yeah, I’ve been open and transparent with our fan base and our players in the sense that they’ll dictate where we’re going, whether we’re buyers or sellers,” Armstrong told The Athletic on Friday. “And at this point, we’re not rich enough as an organization to go down a road and not receive assets if we’re not going to get into the playoffs.”

Who Coyotes could trade at NHL Trade Deadline

The Coyotes are once again selling at the NHL Trade Deadline. And they have a few players who could be on their way out of town. Most of them are pending unrestricted free agents in the summer. For example, defenseman Matt Dumba and forward Jason Zucker are two of the more obvious trade candidates.

Dumba is a veteran defenseman who may be one of the more sought-after defensive names on the market this year. He signed a one-year contract ahead of the 2023-24 NHL season after spending his entire career with the Minnesota Wild to this point. There should be a few teams who take an interest in the veteran rearguard at the NHL Trade Deadline.

Zucker, meanwhile, also signed a one-year contract. He came to Arizona after scoring 27 goals with the Pittsburgh Penguins last year. However, the veteran winger has just eight goals and 22 points through 46 games with the Coyotes. Still, a team could take a chance on him around March 8.

However, the Coyotes could also trade players with term. For example, veteran forward Nick Bjugstad signed a two-year contract ahead of this season. He was dealt at last year's NHL Trade Deadline. And he could be in demand once again as contending teams seek depth.

In any event, the Coyotes are an interesting team on the trade front. Especially now that they have officially decided to sell by March 8. Let's see how things unfold with their players over the next two weeks.