Arizona Coyotes bounce back with 4-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings

What a difference one day can make, what a difference your opponents can make. On what were probably quite tired legs, the Arizona Coyotes have quickly made amends for their 7-0 travesty in Pittsburgh by dispatching the Detroit Red Wings to the tune of a 4-1 victory.

Despite a finishing with a lopsided shot count in favor of the Wings, 38 to 19, the Coyotes appeared to be in control for the whole match and never allowed Detroit to build enough momentum to have any real chance at winning.

Scoring Summary

First Period

1-0 Arizona: Anthony DeAngelo reminds everyone why he is in the NHL playing for the Coyotes and not in the AHL playing for the Roadrunners as he scores an early power play goal. Tobias Rieder made an excellent cross ice pass which found DeAngelo sneaking in at the back-door where he had time and space to make an excellent shot. Assists to Tobias Rieder and Oliver Ekman-Larsson at 2:01.

1-1 Tie: Andreas Athanasiou ties up the game for the Red Wings as the Coyotes’ get caught defending a 2 on 1 rush after a lengthy period of offensive zone time with no shots on goal. Mike Smith made the save on the initial shot but Athanausiou was able to knock the puck into the back of the net using his left foot from the momentum of the rush. Assists to Gustav Nyquist and Xavier Ouellet at 16:12.

2-1 Arizona: After blocking a shot in his defensive end, Radim Vrbata carried the puck all the way to the Coyotes’ offensive blue line. There he dished the puck to Lawson Crouse who was coming hard down the middle. Using his strength and size, Crouse fought off Wings’ defender Mike Green and lifted the puck over Jimmy Howard for a goal. Assist to Radim Vrbata at 19:44.

Second Period

3-1 Arizona: On a broken play Jakob Chychrun rebounded the puck onto to the stick of Peter Holland inside the face-off circle to the left of Jimmy Howard. There he made a slick pass to Jamie McGinn who was right in front of the goal and was able to slip the biscuit home through Howard’s five-hole. Assists to Peter Holland and Jakob Chychrun at 2:39.

Third Period

4-1 Arizona: From the point, Peter Holland fed the puck down the boards to Anthony Duclair who swiveled behind the net before throwing it right to the tape of Jamie McGinn. McGinn easily one-timed in his second goal of the night from right in front of the net. Assists to Anthony Duclair and Peter Holland at 11:27.

Three Answers

1. Will Shane Doan get 400? - Doan was mostly invisible for the night, finishing with no shots on goal and a -1. He now get a chance to score his 400th against Arizona’s future captain and current Maple Leaf: Auston Matthews.

2. Who should start in net? -€” Mike Smith got the start in net. Should he have? Yes, Mike Smith’s .974 save % tells us that Smith wasn’t too tired for tonight’s gig and that Arizona yanked him at the right time in the Pittsburgh match.

3. How long will Anthony Duclair spend in the press box? - Duclair was back in action for the Arizona Coyotes tonight. He logged 13:57 of ice time, made two shots on goal, assisted on one of McGinn’s goals and finished the night on +2. He was zooming around the ice whenever he was on it and looked a lot more like the Duclair of last season. Now he has to do this on the regular.

Players of the Game

Arizona - Mike Smith - 37 saves from 38 shots, was outstanding in the 2nd and 3rd periods. Was awarded the 1st Star of the night by the attending media.

Detroit - Thomas Vanek - Generated a lot of chances for the Red Wings, finished with an assist and was rewarded with the 3rd Star of the night by the attending media.

Paw Prints

• For more on the Detroit Red Wings, check out Winging it in Motown.
• Here’s how the Coyotes lined up at the beginning of the match:

Brendan Perlini -- Martin Hanzal -- Radim Vrbata

Tobias Rieder -- Jordan Martinook -- Shane Doan

Jamie McGinn -- Peter Holland -- Anthony Duclair

Lawson Crouse - Christian Dvorak - Josh Jooris

Oliver Ekman-Larsson -- Luke Schenn

Alex Goligoski -- Anthony DeAngelo

Jakob Chychrun -- Michael Stone

Mike Smith

• Ryan White and Kevin Connauton were healthy scratches for Arizona, while Connor Murphy remained on the bench with a day-to-day injury.
• Peter Holland played for the first time in Sedona Red tonight. He logged 14:18 for Arizona, made with two assists on Jamie McGinn goals, 2 hits and finished the night on +1.
• The brand new ‘McGinn - Holland - Duclair’ line combined for 2 goals and 3 assists for 5 points. Hopefully this is the beginning of some real chemistry as a hot line like this could be just what the doctor ordered for the Coyotes.

Looking Ahead

Arizona will next play on Thursday night in Toronto against the Maple Leafs. Puck drop is at 5:30pm Arizona time and the game can be viewed on Fox Sports Arizona Plus, Fox Sports GO!, or you can tune in to the game on ESPN Phoenix 620 AM.