Coyotes Season Preview: The Desert Dogs aren't moving anywhere
This offseason saw the Arizona Coyotes' future in Glendale brought into question following the city's attempt to terminate the club's lease agreement.
Things were ultimately patched up, ensuring the team won't be moving anywhere. Looking ahead to this season, it also doesn't look like the team is poised to do much moving from where they found themselves in the standings last season.
The team finished just a win ahead of the Buffalo Sabres for the worst record in the league and, heading into this upcoming season, a move from that spot is not likely.
The Coyotes' biggest successes of 2014-15 were that their poor finish landed them the third overall pick in the draft and future star Dylan Strome and that dealing stud defenseman Keith Yandle to the New York Rangers garnered prospect Anthony Duclair and two draft picks.
Defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson led the club in scoring with 23 goals and 43 points, making it clear that the team is in need of a boost upfront. The club gave up 102 more goals than they scored last season, the second-worst goal differential in the league.
Going forward, the team boasts some talented prospects in Max Domi, Duclair, and Strome, but Strome is expected to return to junior and it would be foolish to expect Duclair and Domi to become immediate difference-makers.
The club saw a handful of players depart during the offseason, but without many key acquisitions - next to the return of Antoine Vermette - the Coyotes don't look any better or worse than last season.
| LW | C | RW |
|---|---|---|
| Mikkel Boedker | Martin Hanzal | Shane Doan |
| Anthony Duclair | Antoine Vermette | Max Domi |
| Steve Downie | Boyd Gordon | Tobias Rieder |
| Kyle Chipchura | Joe Vitale | Brad Richardson |
| John Scott | Patrick Dwyer (PTO) |
| LD | RD |
|---|---|
| Oliver Ekman-Larsson | Michael Stone |
| Nicklas Grossmann | Zbynek Michalek |
| Klas Dahlbeck | Stefan Elliott |
| Connor Murphy |
| G |
|---|
| Mike Smith |
| Anders Lindback |
X-Factor
Last season Mike Smith had the fourth-worst goals-against average (3.16) of any goaltender to play at least 25 games - also the worst of his career - and the seventh-worst save percentage (.904).
Those numbers were Smith's worst since joining the Coyotes organization in 2011. To Smith's credit, the Coyotes allowed the fourth most shots against per game, while mustering the eighth-fewest shots.
Despite a lackluster season, Smith is just two seasons removed from an adequate .915 SP and four seasons from a career-year that saw him finish fourth in Vezina Trophy and 11th in Hart Trophy voting.
The Coyotes aren't expected to be great, but if they want to improve on last season, they will need a stronger showing between the pipes.
Player to Watch
Many expected Max Domi to crack the Coyotes roster last season and were surprised with his demotion back to junior. With that being said, another year with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League looks to have done the 20-year-old good.
The 2013 first-round pick finished ninth in OHL scoring with 32 goals and 102 points in 57 games and helped lead Canada to a gold medal with 10 points in seven games.
With a thin top-six, Domi has the potential to receive quality minutes and time on a power play that ranked seventh in the NHL last season. In a year with low expectations, Domi could serve as a silver lining on a team looking towards the future.
If this year's top-two draft picks, Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, fail to live up to their high expectations, there is no reason why Domi couldn't challenge for the Calder Trophy this season.