Game Recap
The Arizona Coyotes dropped their second game of the season and are on a two-game losing streak. The Coyotes played both New York City teams in a back-to-back and fell 1-0 to the New York Islanders tonight.
The Coyotes looked tired in their first back-to-back and failed to generate much offense throughout the game. From the start, they could not create any offensive zone pressure, and even with a full four-minute power play in the first period, they still finished with only three shots on goal.
The second period would prove more of the same, except with an Islanders goal. Barrett Hayton was in the box for slashing, and it took only seven seconds for Mathew Barzal to score what would eventually be the game-winning goal.
It didn’t take long for the Coyotes to get a chance to tie things up with another power play chance when Barzal was sent to the box for holding, but it was another dud. As bad as it was, that power play may have been the highlight in what was one of the Coyotes’ worst periods of the season.
The third period was probably the Yotes’ best, and it wasn’t that good. Arizona doubled their shots on goal from the first two periods and stayed out of the box, but Ilya Sorokin stood tall and preserved his shutout. Arizona finished the game with only 14 shots on goal, a low point for the season.
Karel Vejmelka was definitely a high point of the season. He stopped 30 of 31 shots and did everything he could to help his team win. Whether they were tired or outplayed, the team in front of him owes Veggie a beer after tonight.
The Coyotes played okay, except for the lack of offense. If a bounce had gone another way, you could see the Yotes tying it up and pushing the game into overtime. But they need to find a way to get to the next level because they need to do more to win.
Lines
Three Stars
- Ilya Sorokin – 14 saves on 14 shots
- Mathew Barzal – Game-winning goal
- Karel Vejmelka – 30 saves on 31 shots
Next Game
The Coyotes finish their road trip Thursday against the St. Louis Blues at 5:00 pm Arizona time.