Arizona Coyotes: 3 storylines to watch this season

Bouncing back

At 23 years old, Phoenix Arizona Coyotes defender Oliver Ekman-Larsson has established a sterling reputation as one of the best young defenseman in the NHL. Skilled, rangy and silky smooth on the ice, he has earned the accolades he's received in his young career, but he's also secretly coming off of his worst two-way season in the NHL. 

Of the 11 skaters that Ekman-Larsson played at least 100 even-strength minutes with last season, only four fared better by even-strength shot attempt differential with Ekman-Larsson than they did without him in 2013-14. That's not the type of impact you expect from "one of the best young defenseman in the NHL."

In spite of his two-way struggles, Ekman-Larsson had his best offensive season in 2013-14, and was particularly productive on a suddenly potent Coyotes power play. Still the Coyotes surrendered a well above average number of goals against last season, and need Ekman-Larsson to be less permissive this upcoming campaign.

The Coyotes have no hope of ending their multi-year playoff drought if Ekman-Larsson and the Coyotes in general can't tighten it up. 

Run and gun

Under the guidance of head coach Dave Tippett, scoring goals has never been the Coyotes' calling card. The past two seasons the club's leading scorer has been a defenseman in Keith Yandle, and as good as Yandle is, that's never a good sign. 

This offseason the club lost Radim Vrbata, who led all Coyotes forwards in points over the past two seasons, to free agency and then bought out Mike Ribeiro - who managed 47 points in his first and only season in the desert.

The loss of Ribeiro and Vrbata leaves a gaping hole in Arizona's offensive arsenal, which Sam Gagner seems unlikely to fill on his own, so scoring goals could be a gargantuan struggle for the Coyotes this season. 

There's some intriguing young talent in the Coyotes' pipeline and several players who could push for a roster spot this upcoming season, including prospects Max Domi and Brendan Perlini. The Coyotes desperately need a player like that to step up this season, though, which isn't ideal.

Some of Phoenix's offensive issues might be patched over with their polished power play, which will still boast the potent combination of Ekman-Larsson and Yandle on the points, and captain Shane Doan at the net-front. Even so, it's pretty tough to see where the goals required to keep up with the three California heavyweights are going to come from when you look over this roster.

Gormley time? 

It's time for Brandon Gormley to make the NHL on a full-time basis. 

The talented puck-moving defenseman, a first-round pick of the Coyotes in 2010, has been regarded as one of the best prospects in hockey for several seasons now, but he's appeared in just five career NHL games (all of them last season). 

Gormley's AHL production would suggest the upside and skill is still there, but if he's going to develop into a star player, this is the year to crack the Coyotes' roster. 

The team declined to sign veteran right-handed shooting defender Derek Morris this summer, which ostensibly leaves a space for Gormley to win at training camp. Even without Morris, Gormley will still be in tough to beat out the likes of Zbynek Michalek, Michael Stone and Connor Murphy for playing time.