Game Preview
After dropping their last three matches, the Arizona Coyotes will face the top team in the Pacific Division with no momentum. It will be a tough matchup for the Coyotes, who will face off against recent Stanley Cup winners for the foreseeable future.
The Coyotes played a close game against the St. Louis Blues but failed to take control and finish them off. Arizona had multiple chances to take control of the game but ultimately fell to a third-period goal.
While the Coyotes have struggled with opponents this season, things are much worse with the injuries they are dealing with. The Yotes are currently without their top-line center, Barrett Hayton, who was just starting to heat up before he got hurt. Hayton is a big part of the Coyotes’ power play and penalty kill and is one of the team’s better faceoff men. It is a big hole to fill, and it will require multiple players to step up.
Vegas is one of the league’s top teams this season, but the Coyotes may be catching them at the right time. The Golden Knights are 2-2-1 in their last five games, with one of their wins coming during overtime and the other being a one-goal game.
Vegas comes into tonight’s game having beaten the Stars 2-1 in overtime in their last matchup. It was a close game that saw Vegas draw first blood, only for the Stars to tie it up late in the second period.
The Golden Knights aren’t scoring a lot of goals this season, but they aren’t allowing that many, either. Vegas is 14th in goals scored per game, averaging 3.30 goals compared to the Coyotes’ 3.21. But they are also top-three in goals against per game with 2.40, much better than the Coyotes’ 3.32.
Vegas also has a slight edge with special teams. The Golden Knights’ power play has not had as much success as the Coyotes’, but it is close, 26.1% compared to 23.2%. Considering the Coyotes gave up two short-handed goals in their last matchup and are missing big pieces of their power play, that advantage is probably not something the Coyotes should rely on. Additionally, Vegas has a top-ten penalty kill, while the Coyotes are far less successful when down a man.
Players to Watch
Arizona: Lawson Crouse – Crouse had a goal against the St. Louis Blues and comes into tonight’s game riding a two-game goal streak.
Vegas: Jack Eichel – Eichel had the game-winning goal in the Golden Knight’s last game and comes into tonight’s matchup with 20 points in 20 games.
Injuries
Arizona: Travis Dermott, Barrett Hayton, Jack McBain, Juuso Välimäki
Vegas: Robin Lehner, Alec Martinez, Daniil Miromanov, Isaiah Saville
Puck Drop
Tonight’s game will be in Vegas with an 8:00 p.m. start time. It will air on Scripps.