*Photo from NHL.com*
Despite another bad season in Arizona, they are still a team that won't go down without a fight. Anton Stralman scored, Travis Boyd scored the game winner, and the Arizona Coyotes rallied to defeat the Dallas Stars with a 4-3 overtime win on Wednesday night in Dallas.
It's been another season to forget for the Coyotes, who sit at a 24-50-7 record with just one game left to play in the regular season, and their last home game at Gila River Arena, before relocating to the Arizona State 5,000 seat arena. But the Coyotes still want the season to end well, they're still trying.
Coyotes forward Barrett Hayton said of ending the season right that "The key is just the compete and desire. I think it gets to be a grind, been playing some real strong playoff teams lately. I think just embracing that, competing, obviously wanting to play those complete games and taking a lot of pride in our game at the same time. I think that's really showing in the third period as of late."
Getting the start in goal for the Coyotes was Harri Sateri, who made just his 4th start of the season after coming to the NHL from Europe. Sateri stopped 26 of 29 shots from the Stars, recording a .897 save percentage, with the 3 goals allowed being the best mark of his season. Sateri's record is now 1-2-1.
It was the Stars who got it going, with Jani Hakanpaa scoring his 4th goal of the season on the Stars first shot of the game, coming 4:42 into the first period, with Esa Lindell and Tyler Seguin assisting. Seguin then scored at the 13:48 mark of the first to make it 2-0 Stars. Miro Heiskanen scored on the power play in the second period, making it a 3-0 lead for the Stars after two periods.
In the 3rd period, Stralman started the comeback for the Coyotes, scoring his 8th goal of the season 3:43 into the period, making it a 3-1 game. Shayne Gostisbehere then scored unassisted at the 7:20 mark of the 3rd, pulling the Coyotes to a 3-2 deficit. Hayton tied it on the power play, and Boyd ended it, scoring 1:43 into overtime for the comeback win.
Coyotes head coach Andre Tourigny said of the comeback that "I think in the second period we didn't win as many battles. We went in the third and got the first goal early. That gave us some hope and from there, I think we were pushing. The pressure was all on them. We all know how important that point was for them. They were on their heels a little bit, and we took advantage of it."
Getting the start for the Stars was Scott Wedgewood, who was acquired in a trade from the Coyotes before the trade deadline. On his 3rd team of the season, Wedgewood stopped 33 out of the 37 shots he faced from Arizona. That was good for a .892 save percentage, dropping his record to 13-15-6 this season.
Despite blowing a 3 goal lead and losing in OT, all the Stars needed was to get to overtime. That they did, so they officially clinched a playoff spot, finalizing all 16 teams in the playoffs. All the Stars need to know now is what wild card position they will be in, determining who they'll play in the first round.
Wedgewood said of clinching a spot that "It's a big point, and a playoff berth is what we were fighting for. It's huge for our organization, our team, all the guys what they've done all year. Since I've been here it's been a tough battle. You're obviously upset losing the game when you can get another point in the race, but it takes a lot of pressure off Friday for just staying alive, which we are now. Just win a game on Friday and see what happens."
Up next, the Coyotes wrap up their regular season with a home matchup against the Nashville Predators on Friday night, with Karel Vejmelka likely to get the start. The Stars host the Anaheim Ducks on Friday, with Jake Oettinger in line to start.
Comments
Post a Comment