A Determined Yotes Squad
It’s been a struggling month for the Coyotes, being only 3-5-1 in January so far. It is the midway point of the season, and the team stands at 22-19-3, holding a 5th-place spot in the Central division and three points out of a wild card spot. This is a crucial turning point in the season, where games are a little more intense. Coyotes are confusing to fans, as they can go on a five-game winning streak and then a four game losing streak; it’s how it’s been all season. This week has shown me that the Coyotes are a determined squad despite a couple of losses this week.
A gut-wrenching overtime loss to the Calgary Flames (1/16/24)
The Coyotes faced the Calgary flames in Alberta Tuesday night (1/16). It was supposed to be a bounce-back game for the Yotes squad as they took a pretty harsh loss to the Flames 6-2 at home (1/11). The team did battle hard all game. It was a tough loss for the Coyotes as they were up 2-0 over the Flames squad but took two late goals in the third, carrying the game to overtime. Rookie Logan Cooley was probably one of the best players that night, tallying a goal and eight shots on goal. But he did make a rookie mistake, creating a penalty for too many men in overtime, ultimately leading to a Flames goal and victory. It was a learning curve for the rookie, as he also had two breakaways in-game and couldn’t finish on either, one coming late in the third and one in OT. It was a hard-fought game but a tough way to lose.
Goal scorers:
Coyotes
Sean Durzi (7 goals) assisted by Nick Schmaltz and J.J. Moser 8:22 into the 2nd period.
Logan Cooley (4 goals) assisted by Sean Durzi and Clayton Keller 6:37 into the 3rd period.
Flames
Blake Coleman (20 goals) assisted by Rasmus Andersson 8:54 into the 3rd period.
Nazem Kadri (15 goals) assisted by Martin Pospisil 9:57 into the 3rd period.
Yegor Sharangovich (18 goals) assisted by Nazem Kadri and Elias Lindholm 4:43 into overtime.
2-1 loss to the Vancouver Canucks (1/18/24)
After a tough loss to the Calgary Flames Tuesday night, the Coyotes had another tough test Thursday night (1/18), facing the number two ranked team in the league, the Vancouver Canucks. It was a tough first 20 minutes for the Coyotes as they got outshot 14-4 in the first period. But, the Coyotes had a quick rush down the ice, leading to a Travis Dermott goal and the Coyotes taking over 1-0. Canucks, shortly after Dermott’s goal, tied up the game from a rocket of a shot from all-star Elias Pettersson.
The 2nd period went a lot better for the Coyotes, outshooting the Canucks 10-6 in the period. But, towards the dying minutes of the 2nd period, Dakota Joshua of the Canucks, scored, making it a 2-1 game after the 2nd period. It was a late push from the Canucks squad, and the Coyotes had a defensive breakdown last minute.
The third period came around, and the teams looked to be pretty even in play. Yotes narrowly outshot them 7-6 in shots, but nothing came of it. Leading to a tough 2-1 loss against a tough team. But it’s a game the Coyotes should take somewhat as a positive. Shutting down a lot of the Canucks star players, shutting down their offensive zone game for most of the game. They looked to carry that strong performance to their next game vs the Nashville Predators.
Goal Scorers:
Arizona
Travis Dermott (1st goal of the season) assisted by Alex Kerfoot and Jason Zucker 18:40 into the 1st period.
Canucks
Elias Pettersson (24 goals) assisted by Quinn Hughes and JT Miller 16:49 into the 1st period.
Dakota Joshua (12 goals) assisted by Nils Hoglander and Teddy Blueger 19:02 into the 2nd period.
A much-needed win at home (1/20/24)
On Saturday (1/20), the Nashville Predators visited Tempe, AZ, at the iconic Mullett Arena. The Coyotes were looking for a much-needed win to stay alive in the Wild Card race.
Things were looking rough in the first period of the game as the Coyotes took a penalty very early into the period. Nashville peppered the Coyotes with shots on net, but goaltender Connor Ingram of the Coyotes was standing on his head, making 12 saves in the 1st period. After a dominating start from the Preds, Yotes came down the ice with Sean Durzi making an incredible spin-o-rama pass to Dylan Gunther, who made a great backhand pass to Clayton Keller, giving the Coyotes a 1-0 lead after the 1st period.
2nd period came around and was a lot better for this Coyotes team. The Coyotes were strong on puck possession and did not give the Preds much time to make opportunities. Clayton Keller scored his 2nd of the night off a sweet pass from Matias Maccelli, making it a 2-0 game. Preds came down the ice shortly after Keller’s goal, and Roman Josi of the Predators made it a 2-1 game off a powerful slapshot from the blue line. Midway through the 2nd period, the Coyotes were on another strong offensive cycle, and Jack McBain of the Coyotes made a great pass to the goalie crease, where Michael Carcone tapped it in to make it a 3-1 game. It was all Coyotes in the 2nd.
Goaltender Connor Ingram was phenomenal in the last 20 minutes of the game. The Predators made a late push in the 3rd period trying to get anything they could get to make it a close game. Eventually, the Predators snuck one past Ingram and made it a 3-2 game. But that didn’t stop Ingram from making amazing saves to end the game in a 3-2 victory for the Coyotes. Ingram, making 30 saves on 32 shots faced, pushed the Coyotes closer to a wild card spot, being 4 points back behind Nashville.
Goal Scorers:
Arizona
Clayton Keller (18th goal) assisted by Dylan Guenther and Sean Durzi 9:52 into the 1st period.
Clayton Keller (19th goal) assisted by Matias Maccelli 1:20 into the 2nd period.
Michael Carcone (15th goal) assisted by Jack Mcbain and Sean Durzi 9:50 into the 2nd period.
Nashville
Roman Josi (9th goal) assisted by Gustav Nyquist and Colton Sissons 3:42 into the 2nd period.
Tommy Novak (8th goal) assisted by Roman Josi and Filip Forsberg 18:44 into the 3rd period.
It was a week of hard-fought battles for the Coyotes squad, going 1-1-1 on the week. It was a true test to see where this team will fare out the rest of the season. To me, this is a team determined to win those “meaningful games” and make a strong push for the playoffs. This team doesn’t let up; despite facing injuries and setbacks, this team is fun to watch.
