The Arizona Coyotes and Colorado Avalanche will play each other twice over the next three days.
Game Preview
The Arizona Coyotes may not have the Mullett Magic on the road, but that doesn’t mean you can go easy on them. The Coyotes showed they wouldn’t go down without a fight on Wednesday when they took the Edmonton Oilers to overtime, even if it wasn’t enough to win.
Special teams played a significant part in the Yotes’ last game, with three of the six regulation goals scored on the power play. J.J. Moser tallied the Coyotes’ lone power play goal, while both Connor McDavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins lit the lamp for the Oilers.
The Oilers had two power play goals compared to the Coyotes’ one, and it shouldn’t surprise you that they had twice as many penalties too. Penalties have been an issue for the Coyotes all season, and it tends to bite them.
Wednesday may have been a loss, but it was another excellent night for the Desert Dogs’ core. Clayton Keller had two goals after Moser got the Coyotes’ on the board, and Nick Schmaltz, Barrett Hayton, Matias Maccelli, and Lawson Crouse all had assists, with Schmaltz having two. The extra point may have hurt the Coyotes’ lottery odds, but at least the right players are scoring.
Despite dealing with substantial injuries, the Colorado Avalanche look like they will make the playoffs this year. They have seven wins in their last ten games, and with a game in hand, they could retake the top spot in the Central Division.
The Avalanche’s 3-2 win over the Coyotes on the 11th was the start of a very successful string of games. They had a four-game road trip where they beat the Montréal Canadiens, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Ottawa Senators, and the Detroit Red Wings before returning home to beat the Chicago Blackhawks 5-0. The streak ended on Wednesday when they fell 5-2 to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Colorado may have helped themselves move up the rankings, but their win streak didn’t help the Coyotes much, other than beating the Senators. But wins over the Canadiens and Blackhawks strongly indicate that the Avalanche takes the bottom-feeder teams seriously, which could prove dangerous for the Desert Dogs.
Tonight will be the first of two games these two teams play against each other. After this matchup, they will return to Arizona and play Sunday afternoon in a matinee game.
Players to Watch
Arizona: Clayton Keller – With his second two-goal night in five games, Clayton Keller has 34 goals and 78 points in 72 games. It truly has been a monster season for the 24-year-old forward, and he has ten games left to finish it strong.
Colorado: Nathan MacKinnon – MacKinnon had an assist in the Avalanches’ last game and comes into tonight’s game riding a ten-game point streak. He missed significant time this season but has 90 points in 59 games.
Injuries
Arizona: Zach Kassian (questionable, upper body), Josh Brown (questionable, undisclosed), Jakub Voráček (concussion), Shea Weber (ankle), Bryan Little (ear), Andrew Ladd (knee)
Colorado: Cale Makar (questionable, lower body), Evan Rodrigues (concussion), Artturi Lehkonen (finger), Josh Manson (lower body), Pavel Francouz (lower body), Erik Johnson (ankle), Gabriel Landeskog (knee)
Puck Drop
Tonight’s game will start at 6:00 pm Arizona time and will air on Bally Sports Arizona Extra and ESPN 620 AM.