With the Phoenix Coyotes enjoying yet another strong season under head coach Dave Tippett, clawing their way nearly to the top of the standings at the dawn of December, the team’s incredible progression continues to be overshadowed by the specter of bankruptcy. The murky ownership situation has refueled fears of impending relocation, even with Winnipeg’s appetite for NHL hockey satiated by the sacrifice of the Atlanta Thrashers. Long suffering supporters of the Desert Dogs, faithful fans who patiently endured their team’s seemingly endless rebuilding efforts, have been rewarded with playoff hockey the last two seasons but uncertainty looms even over this recent rise. Even as the Coyotes prove that they can play with the league’s elite, testing the vaunted Detroit Red Wings in a scintillating, seven-game postseason tilt the 2010 Playoffs, the collective skepticism voiced by a doubtful hockey community has not subsided. National pundits cite the swaths of empty seats seen nightly throughout Jobing.com Arena as solid evidence that hockey’s dalliance in the desert is destined to fail. For observers residing in hockey hotbeds like Toronto, Boston or Detroit, the sight of entire sections shuttered by unsold tickets at an NHL game is certainly a shock to the senses, but a closer look shows that there may be more to the Coyotes’ attendance woes than meets the eye.

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When the Phoenix Coyotes (13-7-3) take the ice tonight against the reincarnated Winnipeg Jets (9-11-4) franchise, there will definitely be more than points in the standings at stake. Two teams heading in different directions will drop the puck surrounded by a sellout crowd at MTS Centre, and 15,000 of Manitoba’s most rabid hockey fans are sure to make their loyalties clear. The return of Doaner and the Coyotes to the whitewashed wastelands of Winnipeg, some 15 years after their sudden departure to the desert, marks the only opportunity Jets fans have this season to exorcise the demons of relocation. You can expect the intensity to be ratcheted up from the first shift, both on the ice and in the stands, as the crowd’s enthusiasm will undoubtedly inspire the Jets to try and win one for the Winnipeg faithful. Unfortunately for Jets fans, the jerseys they’ll be cheering on will be worn by a rag-tag collection of defunct Atlanta Thrashers and NHL castoffs, while the visiting team appears to be hitting its stride.

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The first period of the Coyotes/Blackhawks game started like you would think it would after watching the two teams first meeting earlier this season, with the Blackhawks appearing to be in control of the game with a strong defense. But as the period kept going I noticed, what was at first a subtle change, the Coyotes were having more shots on goal, the puck was spending more time in the Blackhawks zone, and the team was playing as strongly as I had seen them. And then at the 15:53 mark Daymond Langkow got the puck into the net with an unbelievable goal, making the score 1-0 Coyotes for the first period.

The second period in Coyotes kept up the pressure and intensity, with Doan scoring 9:54 minutes in and fighting off what could have been Blackhawks goals around 6 and 12 minutes in. The attempt around 12:41 was excellently saved by Smith with some major assistance by the defense keeping the score at 2-0 Coyotes. The second period also presented the first Power Play opportunity of the game, which matched a team with a bad Power Play goal record against the team with the worst Penalty kill in the league. Although the Coyotes were unable to capitalize on they did come close a couple of times, and it was definite improvement over some of the previous Power Plays.

Period three opened all Coyotes with Vrbata scoring 1:12 in and Whitney scoring at 5:02. After Whitney’s goal the arena saw an exodus of Chicago fans, including one amazing scene were a group of 4 Blackhawks fans next to a smiling Coyotes fan, perhaps one of my favorite moments of the game. At this point in the game we started to see a frustrated Chicago team, one that seemed eager to start fights with the winning team. At 7:37 into the third the Coyotes appeared to have scored their fifth goal of the evening, only to have to have the officials rule that the goal didn’t count because of movement to blow a whistle due to a situation with Langkow and Carcillo, both players were also called for cross checking which lead to 2 minutes of 4 on 4 hockey. Carcillo was soon called again for slashing leading to another Power Play, this one was less effective than the previous one, with Smith having to make some vital saves against the shorthanded Hawks. With 2:49 to go in the third Klesla was called for cross checking, which resulted in the Hawks first Power Play of the game. The Yote’s penalty kill was true to its reputation, however ten seconds after killing the penalty kill, Sharp managed to get one past Smith, leaving the final score 4-1.

Overall the Coyotes played one of their better games, defense was great, offense was amazing, and goaltending by Smith continues to be a major part of the Coyotes success. The one thing that could have been better was the Power Play, especially against a team like Chicago with their terrible PK record.

Now, I'll be the first to admit, I'm a Jarome Iginla fan. I have the Reebok reissue of the 80's Flames uniform in my closet (and it gets more wear than a western conference rivals jersey should.

So - if the Flames are in rebuild mode...AND rumours are that they are interested in everyones favorite holdout (Kyle Turris)..

To PHX: Jarome Iginla

To CAL: Kyle Turris, 2nd Round pick

So what do you think?

In the last week or so the issue of the local newspaper not sending a reporter on the road to cover the Coyotes came up again.  Several people, including myself, emailed The Arizona Republic about the issue.  Below is the response from I received from the paper's sports editor, Mark Faller.

This will answer several e-mails I’ve received about our lack of staff road coverage for the Phoenix Coyotes.

 

We value the Coyotes and know they have loyal fans. But we have to make tough decisions about how best to use our resources to cover a myriad of sports in a crowded sports marketplace. At this time our policy with the Coyotes remains the same – we don’t expect to be able to travel with them. As the end of the regular season nears, and they appear headed toward the playoffs, then we will re-evaluate.

 

We are taking steps to minimize the impact of this decision by supplementing wire content with occasional staff stories on off days while the team is away – for example, reaching out to coaches and players on the phone when warranted.

 

Some have suggested that since the NBA is in lockout, we should reallocate travel money normally used on the Suns. That’s not relevant because we have to be prepared to react in case some form of a season still takes place. Also, we face new expenses in 2012, such as the Summer Olympics, that have to be considered.

 

Thanks for taking the time to share your concerns.

 

Mark Faller

Sports editor

The Arizona Republic | azcentral.com

Update (10/25):  We are reposting Justin's fanpost and have reopened the comments section because we want to make sure all of our readers get to join in the fun. 

This idea is borrowed from other SBN sites (well, specifically AZSnakepit, since I go there). Basically what a guest recap is is... well, a non staff member gets to recap the game! Sounds fun :P (so Travis, Carl, etc can't get a guest spot). I was thinking about doing one a month. Here is the NHL's schedule for the upcoming season (note, certain games I deleted because I think the staff should recap those):

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Puck Daddy's Dimitry Chesnokov reported earlier this morning that the plane reportedly carrying Lokamotiv's team to Minsk crashed and as many as 36 of the 37 people on board were killed. The team's new coach this season is former Coyotes player and former NHL assistant coach Brad McCrimmon. In addition, his former teammate from the inaugural Coyotes squad, Igor Korolev was on the coaching staff. Here is a link to the roster listed on the team's website. Coyotes fans will likely remember former Duck and Red Wing Ruslan Salei as well as former NHL all-star Pavol Demitra.

We'll do our best to continue to update you as more information becomes available.

Update: Various media outlets are now reporting 43 people died in the crash. However, I haven't seen official confirmation of the number from the Russian government or the team.

Update: Statement from the KHL on the crash.

After fielding questions from the media after being drafted, Phoenix Coyotes 20th overall pick Connor Murphy stated that, "I trust in everyone's opinion in Phoenix and I would do what they want." Murphy, has had many college offers but has committed to the Miami(OH) Hockey team in the CCHA.

Looking at it I havn't had a chance to talk to Connor myself yet as they are just getting back from the twin cities as we speak. If it was up to me I would encourage him to go to Miami to develop as well as fill out on his 6'3 frame. At this point, more time for him the better. 

UPDATE(7/28): Connor Murphy decides to join the Sarnia Sting of the OHL. Ruling Out Miami(OH) hockey program. 

The playoffs are over and the winner is determined.  I didn't have a team in the mix, not since the Coyotes left in the first round.  I watched the rest o the playoffs for the same reason most of us do,  because we love hockey.

In years and years of watching it, I have never been more disappointed.  Not with the teams ,not with the officiating, but with the announcing.  I have never seen a sports event where the bias was more obvious than the charade paraded by NBC.  In every aspect of the coverage, this collection of clowns, made up of ex goons like Milbury and failed coaches like McGuire dutifully followed the lead of Doc Bias in blatantly siding with Boston in every aspect of their production.  From the subtle clues like volume, inflection, emphasis versus apathy, to the more obvious, like time spent in interviews, time analyzing play and credit given to players, this entire broadcast was massively one sided toward Boston. McGuire's  sneering interviews of the Vancouver players was pathetic, demeaning and unworthy.

Sure Boston won.  Convincingly, in fact in the seventh game.  They figured out how to win.  Vancouver didn't, but neither team should be diminished for their effort.

There must be a better group of announcers to field this, the greatest of championship contests.  We cherish the game for its honesty, effort and plain hard work.  Being forced to listen to the likes of Doc Emerick,, Pierre McGuire, and Mike Milbury cheapen the event and make losers of us all.

Whether your a fan of a team in the final or a fan of good hard nosed hockey, we should all demand honest, objective announcing.  This event was painful to listen to and watch.  We deserve better.

The Conference Finals are set now.
Boston-Tampa (sorry MDO)
Vancouver-SJ

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