At this point in the NHL season, if you were to tell me that the Arizona Coyotes were going to be in second place in the Pacific Division, I would have thought you would be insane. Here we are now, and that is exactly where the Coyotes stand, four points clear of both San Jose and Vancouver despite having a -8 in goal differential and giving up the third most goals in the Western Conference. So, how have the Coyotes done it? An early hot start with Mike Smith in goal, scoring by committee that includes leading scorers Mikkel Boedker, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, and Max Domi, recent goaltending from Louis Dominique, stability in the ownership, and a stellar home record have all attributed to their success. At some point, the Coyotes should fall off, given that Shane Doan leads the team in goals and proven success hasn't always been a staple of the team, but we are talking about the Arizona Coyotes, a team that has had a history of proving people wrong in recent years. Domi and Anthony Duclair both have a hat-trick to their names, as Domi helped the Coyotes come back in their most recent game against the Edmonton Oilers while Duclair has proven to be NHL-ready this season after starting in the NHL with the New York Rangers last season before getting sent down and later traded in the Keith Yandle deal.
No comments:
Post a Comment