Game Preview
The Arizona Coyotes have a winning record to start the season with a 3-2-0 record through their first five games. The Coyotes returned home to the Mullett Arena and beat the Anaheim Ducks 2-1 in regulation.
It was far from a perfect match, but it showed why teams need to take the Coyotes seriously this season. They have good offense, solid goaltending, and decent special teams.
Clayton Keller and Jason Zucker scored the Coyotes’ two goals. It was Keller’s third goal of the season and sixth point as the young forward continues to be a significant piece of the Coyotes’ offense.
Unfortunately, despite the goal, it was not a good game for Zucker. He was limited to just 5:33 of ice time, and the Coyotes announced yesterday that he is week-to-week with a lower-body injury.
Zucker seemed to be finding his footing with the Desert Dogs and his linemate Logan Cooley, having scored in consecutive games. The Coyotes have recalled Jan Jeník and Zach Sanford, who will get a chance to compete for a spot.
Dealing with Zucker’s injury will be the Coyotes’ first brush with adversity, and their response will be telling. Zucker has an important role with the team, both on a line with rookie Cooley but also as a veteran presence, and someone needs to step up to take that role.
The Los Angeles Kings are off to a good start and come into tonight’s game with a 2-2-1 record through their first five games, with wins over the Winnipeg Jets and Minnesota Wild.
In what could be a concern for the Coyotes, the Kings have been scoring a lot of goals. The Kings have scored 21 goals this season, tied for fourth with the Ottawa Senators, compared to the 12 the Coyotes have scored in the same number of games. They beat the Wild 7-3 and the Jets 5-1 and scored five in a shootout loss to the Carolina Hurricanes.
Not only have the Jets been scoring goals, they have been doing it mostly 5-on-5. They only have four power play goals this season, converting only 19.1% of the time. If the Kings can find a way to get their power play, they could prove to be a dangerous team this season.
While the Kings aren’t scoring much with the man advantage, they have been great on the penalty kill. The Kings have the eighth-best penalty kill in the NHL, killing 89.5% of the penalties they have taken. And it’s not like the Kings haven’t been taking penalties; they have taken 26 this season, just three fewer than the Coyotes.
Tonight will be the first of two games against the Kings, with the two meeting in Arizona this Friday. Given the back-to-back nature, tonight may involve both teams feeling each other out in preparation before this Friday’s game.
Players to Watch
Arizona: Clayton Keller – Keller has goals in back-to-back games and has three points in those two games. Keller is the Coyotes’ best player, and he is proving to be a leader on the ice again this season.
Los Angeles: Carl Grundstrom – After finishing the 2022-23 season with 12 goals in 57 games, Grundstrom has three goals in five games this season. At only 25 years old, Grundstrom is still approaching his prime, but it remains to be seen if he can continue at this pace for the rest of the season.
Injuries
Arizona: Jason Zucker (week-to-week), Michael Carcone (day-to-day)
Los Angeles: Viktor Arvidsson (IR)
Puck Drop
Tonight’s game will be in Los Angeles with a 7:30 start time in Arizona. It will air on Scripps, and Five For Howling’s live coverage will be on Bluesky at five4howling.bsky.social