Game Preview
The Arizona Coyotes’ road trip started with a rough one, with the Yotes falling 6-2 to the Florida Panthers. It was a blow-out that saw the Panthers score six unanswered goals before the Coyotes finally scored twice in the third period to avoid the shutout.
It didn’t take long for the Coyotes to fall behind, giving up the first goal just 1:53 into the first period. The Panthers followed that up with a power play goal just under nine minutes in and a 5-on-5 goal 17 seconds after that.
Arizona’s power play came up short against the Panthers, despite the late power play goal from Dylan Guenther. The Desert Dogs had seven power plays but only converted on one of their chances.
But some games are best just to forget and move on from. The Coyotes have another matchup tonight, facing off against the fourth-best team in the Atlantic Division, the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Tampa Bay may be 4th in their division, but the Coyotes shouldn’t take them lightly. They are just one point behind the Toronto Maple Leafs and are 7-3-0 in their last ten games.
The Lightning last played on Tuesday when they beat the Philadelphia Flyers 6-3. The Lightning came out strong against the Flyers with a goal just under two minutes in, which they followed with two more unanswered goals before the Flyers finally got on the board halfway through regulation.
Special teams played a significant factor in the Lightning’s last game. Tampa Bay went two-for-three on the man advantage, including scoring after giving up a power play goal in the second period.
The Coyotes and Lightning already played one game this season, which saw the Coyotes beat the Lightning 3-1 in late November. It was a good game for secondary scoring, with Michael Carcone scoring twice and Travis Boyd notching his first goal of the season.
Special teams didn’t play a factor in the first game, with neither team scoring on their two power play opportunities. But as the Lightning’s last game showed, the Coyotes shouldn’t count on that being the case tonight.
The Lighting have the best power play in the NHL, converting 30.5% of the time. Their penalty kill isn’t on that level, but at 12th with an 80.8% success rating, it is better than the Coyotes are short-handed.
Players to Watch
Arizona: Dylan Guenther – Guenther was involved in both Coyotes’ goals last night, notching a goal and an assist. He has been excellent since being called up from the Tucson Roadrunners and is bringing out the best in rookie Logan Cooley.
Tampa Bay: Nikita Kucherov – Kucherov had a four-point night against the Flyers, with three goals and an assist in 24 minutes and 36 seconds. He comes into tonight’s game with 31 goals and 49 points in 49 games.
Injuries
Arizona: Travis Boyd (pectoral), Matt Dumba (upper body), Barrett Hayton (upper body), Vladislav Kolyachonok (lower body), Troy Stecher (lower body)
Tampa Bay: Logan Brown (undisclosed), Erik Černák (upper body), Haydn Fleury (hand), Tanner Jeannot (lower body), Brent Seabrook (hip), Mikhail Sergachev (lower body), Austin Watson (lower body)
Puck Drop
Tonight’s game will be at 5:00 p.m. Arizona time and will air on Scripps.