GLENDALE, Ariz – The Arizona Coyotes had a very surprising 2018-2019 season, not in the end result of missing out on the playoffs for the seventh straight season, but in contending for the final wild card spot until their penultimate game of the season.
At the start of the 2018-19 NHL season, there were probably not many people who expected to see the Arizona Coyotes occupying a playoff spot with 10 games remaining (which was where they briefly found themselves before an 0-3-1 road trip left them on the outside looking in).
The most impressive part about Arizona’s season was that they did it without the services of many of their best players for large swathes of the season.
Not only were they among the top NHL teams in terms of man-games lost due to injury, the Coyotes also lost many of their key players for extended periods, including their starting goaltender Antti Raanta, two of their key penalty killers, a couple of their veteran defensemen, and several of their leading scorers.
Losing Raanta for the bulk of the season was a large hurdle to overcome, but it did demonstrate their depth at the position when Darcy Kuemper was forced to shoulder the load. He performed admirably, posting a 27-20 record with a 2.33 Goals Against Average and a .925 Save Percentage, along with five shutouts.
Arizona was sound defensively, allowing the eighth fewest goals (223). They also allowed the second-fewest power play goals (34) while scoring the second-most short-handed goals (16) after leading for most of the season until Michael Grabner’s injury derailed their top penalty-killing unit. What they lacked was offense, scoring the fifth fewest goals (213), along with the tenth-fewest power play goals (42).
The most telling stat regarding the Coyotes’ offense lies in their complete lack of a 20-goal scorer. Alex Galchenyuk and Brad Richardson, both of whom missed time due to injury, finished the season with 19 goals each. No other NHL team lacked 20-goal scorers. You could say that the Coyotes had a balanced scoring attack. They finished with eleven players who scored more than 10 goals each (Grabner finished with 9 goals despite missing significant time due to an eye injury).
Clearly, the biggest organizational need for the team is goal scoring. They haven’t had a 30+ goal scorer since Radim Vrbata scored 35 in 2011-12. In the six full seasons since then, the Coyotes have had a total of nine 20+ goal scorers.
Unfortunately for Arizona, there isn’t likely to be anybody left on the draft board at #14 that has the ability to jump in and help the Coyotes offense right out of the draft. Coyotes General Manager John Chayka has said that the team will likely look for scoring help via either the free-agent or trade route, in addition to counting on continued improvement from their young talent and a return to form of Clayton Keller and Galchenyuk. A full season from Christian Dvorak should help. Barrett Hayton could contend for a roster spot this season. The Coyotes have high hopes for his abilities. He is expected to be the #1 center they’ve been looking for over the past few seasons. Nick Merkley might be ready to make his move to the NHL. The team will no doubt look to players like Nick Schmaltz and Vinnie Hinostroza to make a big contribution as well as promising youngster Conor Garland.
One area where the Coyotes may look for help is on defense. While they are in good shape now, and they have Captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Jakob Chychrun locked up long-term, they have several D-men who will be entering their mid-30s when their contracts expire in 2021. That should be just enough time to develop a good young defenseman to bolster their back end.
One player who checks a lot of the Coyotes’ boxes in terms of young talent is defenseman Victor Soderstrom. Victor is an excellent two-way defenseman, whose elite skating ability, poise and positioning, both with and without the puck, make him a game-changer at both ends of the ice. He is a dynamic puck carrier with a great shot and makes good decisions, and is comfortable going up against the opponent’s top players.
PHN believes that the Coyotes will take the best available player when their pick comes up, and that player will be announced as follows:
“With the 14th overall pick, the Arizona Coyotes select, from Brynas of the Swedish Hockey League, defenseman Victor Soderstrom.”
You must be logged in to post a comment.