Coyotes' Duclair admits he's having 'an awful year'

This isn't how Anthony Duclair had it drawn up.

After potting 20 goals in his rookie campaign a year ago, the young winger has struggled through his second season with the Arizona Coyotes, so much so that he's found himself in the AHL in recent weeks.

Duclair tallied just three goals and six assists through the first 41 games in Arizona, leaving the Coyotes to send him to their minor-league affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, but the results haven't been much better since his Jan. 19 demotion.

A noted sniper, Duclair has recorded seven points in 10 games with the Roadrunners, but has scored just a single goal.

"It's been an awful year for myself and I take full responsibility for that," Duclair told Craig Morgan of Arizona Sports. "The chances are there but the puck is not going in for me right now. Confidence is a big factor and when the puck isn't going in, confidence goes down a bit."

It's been such a disastrous season for the young winger that he's been the frequent subject of trade speculation throughout the year. The Coyotes acquired Duclair from the New York Rangers at the 2015 trade deadline.

Still, Coyotes general manager John Chayka noted that he has seen progress in Duclair's game in recent days, telling Morgan, "He just has to earn that recall. He's as talented a player as we have in the organization. It's about doing it consistently and we need him to drive some of his own offense and not be as reliant on other players to do some of those other things."