The Arizona Coyotes come off of their four game road trip to play in front of a home crowd tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Coyotes are currently 4-6-1 while the Maple Leafs are 6-4-1.
Here are your three keys to the game:
1) Contain Kessel:
The Phil, praise be His name, has come to grace his presence on Arizona ice tonight. That is right, everyone’s favorite American right wing Phil “The Thrill” Kessel is in town and he has a key dedicated all to himself. His beauty isn’t the only thing that the Coyotes will need to be on the look out for this evening as his stick is red hot. Kessel is on to a great start this season as he ranks 6th in the league in points with 14 through 11 games. He certainly makes an impact when he steps on the ice. Look for Tippett to have a guy like Yandle out on the ice whenever Kessel goes out for a shift. If Keith Yandle can dedicate his game to containing Phil Kessel, that is one less threat to worry about tonight.
Remember: Praise be to The Phil and the Temple from which He came.
2) Momentum and Gila River Arena:
It was a rough east coast road trip for our Arizona Coyotes but thankfully, they are now back home. The Coyotes went 1-3-0 the past week with their only win being a 6-5 victory against the Washington Capitals this past Sunday. It’s safe to say that the desert dogs play better, coincidentally, in the desert. If the Coyotes can ride the momentum from Sunday’s win and grab hold of the electric atmosphere of Gila River Arena; Toronto should not be too big of a problem. The fans will need to do their part by packing the arena and howling along with the pack.
3) Keep Capitalizing on the Power Play:
While both defense and offense have been lacking this season, the power play squad for the Arizona Coyotes has been red hot. The Coyotes are currently ranked fourth in the entire league with a 25.6% man advantage percentage. Basically one out of four power plays result in a goal which is incredible. Look for the Coyotes to add to their power play goal total as they are currently 11 for 43. Roughly 39.3% of Arizona’s goals this year have come off the power play so my advice is not to change a thing. Do not be afraid to draw a penalty and then capitalize on it.