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Coyotes GM is ‘comfortable’ with Smith contract talks

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The Phoenix Coyotes have had fairly detailed contract talks with pending unrestricted free agent goalie Mike Smith; however, just like the team’s future in the desert remains uncertain, so does Smith’s future with the team.

“We’re still kind of working the process to see if there’s a gap to be bridged,” Coyotes general manager Don Maloney said Monday, per azcentral.com, “Is there a line to be crossed or nobody’s going to go any further?

“We feel comfortable with what we’ve thrown his way, and he feels comfortable where he’s at right now. The good thing for us is this isn’t July 4 where we have to make a decision ... We have time to sort of mull it and digest it and figure out whether we want to go this route or not.”

Smith, 31, went 15-12-5 in 2013, finishing with a .910 save percentage, down from the .930 rate he registered in 2011-12 that earned him Vezina Trophy consideration.

It may be a good thing for the Coyotes that free agency falls on July 5, not July 1, this year, as the City of Glendale isn’t expected to vote on an essential arena-management deal with prospective owner Renaissance Sports & Entertainment until July 2.

Related: Coyotes ownership update: ‘Nobody’s hanging up on anybody’