Last night the Phoenix Coyotes were defeated by the Detroit Red Wings 6-1. They ended up losing the series four games to three. Today I'll take a look back with how Phoenix got here, what went wrong & where they go from here.
How they got here:
Phoenix finished 50-25-7 on the season, good enough for 107 points & 4th place in the Western Conference.
Not bad for a team that wasn't sure of their future going into the season. The Coyotes started the season in bankruptcy and weren't sure where they would be calling home. Dave Tippett was hired as head coach a month before the season started.
Iyla Bryzgalov provided stability in net for the Coyotes and Keith Yandle emerged as one of the top young defenseman in the league this season leading all Coyotes on the blue line with 41 points.
Matthew Lombardi had a career year scoring 53 points which was 2nd to Captain Shane Doan's 55 points among forwards. Radim Vrbata led the team in goals with 24.
What went wrong:
They drew the hottest team in the league, The Detroit Red Wings, as their 1st round opponent. Granted the Coyotes won the opening game of the series 3-2 and forced Detroit to a seventh game but I was never worried the the Wings would lose the series.
Watching these two teams it became clear early on that the Coyotes could not skate with the Red Wings. Their best chance to win this series was to muck & grind. The Coyotes had some success doing that and they were able to take advantage of the special teams miscues by Detroit in their wins in games one & six.
In game seven they were completely outplayed by Detroit from the start. Bryzgalov turned away seventeen shots on goal in the 1st period but the Wings finally broke through scoring four goals on twenty-two shots in the second period.
It was Detroit's special teams that did in Phoenix on Tuesday, scoring three Power Play goals and killing off all six penalties including a 5 on 3 in the 2nd period leading to Brad Stuart's breakaway goal which ended up being the nail in the coffin.
Where they go from here:
Winnipeg, Kansas City, Prague? I honestly don't know where the Coyotes will end up playing in the future. On the ice they have a good coach behind the bench that seems to get the most out of his talent. Their record however is a bit misleading. Phoenix was 19-7 in games that went to overtime and 12 of those wins came in the shootout.
They have some talented players on their roster but of lot of them overachieved this season. I think a lot of teams didn't take Phoenix seriously when they played them. That won't happen next season. It wouldn't surprise me if the Coyotes take a step back next season.
It feels strange to say (type) this, but I really hope they stay in Phoenix.
ReplyDeleteThey have a good facility in a nice area of town, and a fan base who'll clearly turn out for a winner.
I never underestimate the NHL's ability to screw things up, so I won't make a prediction. I just hope they wind up staying in Phoenix.