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Coyotes, Boedker continue to haggle

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The Phoenix Coyotes are negotiating with restricted free agent Mikkel Boedker’s representatives, but no deal is imminent, the Arizona Republic reports.

“We have lots of time before we play a game, but obviously we’d like to get ‘Boeds’ done,” Assistant GM Brad Treliving said. “We’ve looked at different terms. We’ll keep banging away.”

The 23-year-old winger’s agent Jarrett Bousquet explains the rationale behind opting against salary arbitration.

“I just think arbitration wasn’t a process that we felt was healthy for both sides, and that’s why we didn’t file and they didn’t file on us,” Bousquet said. “I think we just continue to negotiate in good faith and try to bridge the gap.”

Treliving called Boedker the team’s “MVP” in the first half of 2013, but he had an up-and-down campaign. After scoring 15 points in the first 20 games of the season, Boedker’s play declined. Things really ended on a whimper as he only had two points - both assists - in the last 10 games of 2013.

Even so, Boedker scored the second-most points of his young career last season despite an abbreviated campaign.

That makes for a tricky valuation process, even if feelings will be spared from an arbitration hearing.