The Senators struggled late in the 2007–08 season, leading general manager Bryan Murray to make changes to the team. Both Emery and McGrattan were sent from Ottawa in separate transactions. McGrattan, a pending free agent, was traded to the Phoenix Coyotes on June 25, 2008, in exchange for a fifth-round draft pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. The Coyotes subsequently signed him to a one-year contract for the 2008–09 season. However, he played only three games with Phoenix before he voluntarily entered the league's substance abuse program. McGrattan's struggles with alcohol abuse reached its lowest point and he spent over two months at an Arizona rehab centre as he worked toward changing his life. He returned to the Coyotes late in the season but played only two additional games before he suffered a shoulder injury that required surgery to repair.
