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Arizona Coyotes vs Anaheim Ducks: Preseason Preview

By Catherine Silverman

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Jan 11, 2014; Glendale, AZ, USA; Phoenix Coyotes forward Mike Ribeiro (63) shoots and scores against the Anaheim Ducks goalie Jonas Hiller (1) in the third period at Jobing.com Arena. The Ducks win 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Stewart-USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Coyotes are coming off an intense split-game against the L.A. Kings. Both matchups went into overtime… then to a shootout.

Conversely, the Anaheim Ducks are feeling pretty confident about their performance last night. They, to put it nicely, trounced the Colorado Avalanche in a 4-0 shutout in one game. Oh, and their second game wasn’t bad, either- they took that one home as well, posting a 5-2 victory on the road in Colorado.

The Ducks and the ‘Yotes are facing off tonight at 7pm in California, and there are a couple of questions on my mind-

First, how will Tippett arrange the offensive lines? 

This isn’t going to be a split-squad game, so head coach Dave Tippett won’t necessarily have the opportunity to devastate the opposition with a first line of Max Domi-Martin Hanzal-Henrik Samuelsson. Here’s what I’d like to see:

Antoine Vermette-Sam Gagner-Shane Doan

Henrik Samuelsson-Max Domi-Mikkel Boedker

Tobias Reider-Lucas Lessio-Martin Erat

Brendan Perlini-Tyler Gaudet-B.J. Crombeen

I’m sorry, but I think Korpikoski should sit this one out. I really want to see what happens when Domi is setting up shots for Samuelsson, and I think it would be interesting to see how last year’s MVP works with new guy Sam Gagner.

Who’s going to be in net?

I’m directing this question at both teams. Apparently, the Ducks kept Frederik Andersen in for the entire home game last night, so I can only assume we’ll be seeing John Gibson for the entire matchup against the ‘Yotes tonight.

I’d like to see more of Mike Smith, because I want to see how well he holds up in back-to-back games again now that he’s healthy. For this game, though, I think Smith could afford to split the match with Brendan Burke. The kid may have another year left in the juniors, but I’d like to see how well he’s developing in comparison to his NHL counterparts. He’s only a year and a half younger than Gibson, and I’d like to see how they fare when placed side-by-side (or, in this case, across the ice).

Will OEL be on his “A” game… or even in the game? 

For a kid looking to have his breakout season, Oliver Ekman-Larsson made some pretty lukewarm plays last night.

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    • I know that everyone has off-games, and the spotlight is really on who’s going to skate alongside Keith Yandle this season. Still, I expected Ekman-Larsson to come back after the summer even better than he was this past year- and I just didn’t see that in the game last night. Especially when playing against a team so known for their physicality, OEL is going to need to be better than that.

    Can Domi keep his head? 

    This game, to me, is going to really be the ultimate test for whether Max Domi makes the squad this season. The L.A. Kings are huge rivals for the Coyotes, but the Ducks are downright nasty- even their forwards are big and aggressive. Ryan Getzlaf is arguably more intimidating than some of the blue liners on softer teams (my goal is to watch Brendan Smith do to Getzlaf this year what he tried to do to Zdeno Chara this spring, because that would be hilarious), and eighteen-year-old Nick Ritchie is fitting in with the Anaheim model already.

    Domi’s biggest fault to date is his inability to keep his temper in check when an instigator starts to poke at him, and this is the kind of game where we’re most likely to see that. If the high-scoring prospect can keep his head, though, that’ll be just another flurry of brownie points to chalk up next to his spectacular shootout last night.

    How ready is Tyler Gaudet? 

    During his presser with the media last night, Tippett was full of praise for prospect Tyler Gaudet. He suggested that the player is going to be good, and good for a long time- impressive, considering Gaudet’s background. The Canadian forward failed to get drafted in either the OHL or NHL entry level drafts, even dropping down from the major juniors at one point.

    Tippett isn’t known for being particularly generous with praise for his youngest players, though, so it speaks volumes that he’s so excited about Gaudet. The question is- will this be his year, or next?

    ***UPDATE: Teams will remain split for the next two games. More on that here.*****

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