Ducks win to snap Coyotes streak

All good things must come to an end and it did for the Coyotes in their 6-4 loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday night.  The loss snapped the Yotes win streak of seven games and Phoenix’s unbeaten streak at nine.  Anaheim’s victory snapped their own six-game losing streak.

Midway through the second period, things were looking good for Phoenix.  They were up 3-1 after two straight goals from Lauri Korpikowski and Keith Yandle in the period, but five straight goals from the Ducks, including three in less than two minutes in the the third period, gave Anaheim the lead for good.  Scottie Upshall scored with less than six minutes in the final period, but it was too little too late.

The Coyotes led in pretty much every major category.  They outshot Anaheim by nine, outhit the Ducks and they flat out dominated the game at times, but that wasn’t the entire story to the game.  A major turning point came in the third period when a backhand shot from Wojtek Wolski hit off the post.  Just a few seconds later, Bobby Ryan streaked down the other side of the ice to score on a breakaway goal to tie the game up at three.  The goal was Ryan’s second on the night and he would add another one later in the third period for a hat trick.  Simply put, if Wolski’s goal goes into the net, Anaheim probably doesn’t win the game.

A big part of hockey is about getting some breaks and when you get those breaks, taking advantage of them.  During their seven-game wins streak, the Desert Dogs did exactly that, but they failed to do so on Saturday against a struggling Ducks squad. Despite the loss, Phoenix is still tied for first place in the Pacific Division.

The Coyotes have the first leg of a back-to-back on Tuesday night against the Nashville Predators.  The game will start at 6 p.m. AZ time.  Hopefully they can get back to their winning ways and start a new streak.