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Editorial: Arizona Coyotes are in a tough slump

By William Grigsby |

The Arizona Coyotes have a problem: But what is it, and how do we fix it?

I don’t know about you, but lately it’s costing me all the positive energy I can muster to keep cheering on this team.

I pride myself in NOT being a “fair weather fan”, or one of the “bandwagon” variety, either — I’d rather suffer together with the team I love than hop from winner to winner. Is it just me, fans? I don’t think so.

With that being said, though, losing is never fun… and it hurts even more when it doesn’t always make sense. I’m sure most fans will agree that the Yotes have had some bright spots (like shutting out the Canucks, and going 6-2 against the Pacific Division teams), and they’ve had three separate players score their first NHL goals — two in their NHL debuts.

So why are we sitting at a 9-12-3 record? I. Don’t. Understand.

The most painful part of this is deciding what hurts more- the blown leads (hello, Colorado, did you HAVE to rediscover your scoring prowess against us?) or those games in which the Coyotes get outplayed and outsmarted from start to finish. Hockey is a game that involves a lot of breaks, and of late we just are not receiving our quota. It won’t happen too often that you allow the opposing team to score not once, but twice off your own players; it happens, and then you play the next game and try to forget about the bad luck.

Here’s what it looked like in the Calgary game:

Seriously… I can’t watch..one word comes to mind- FRUSTRATION.

Allowing the opposing team to score 7 straight goals without scoring even one is difficult to swallow at best.

With a record so far of 9-12-3 and the quarter mark of the season already in our rear view mirror, is it time to make some adjustments? With some talent in our minor league team in Portland, the Coyotes have room to make a trade and still retain some talent. Teams like the Edmonton Oilers come to mind- there are a number of franchises that look to be more than ready for a move to improve their teams. I’m so in the dumper about the Yotes lately that I’d consider trading Michalek, Yandle, Hanzal, Vermette — take your pick — to get us some help which will get us back on track.

Let’s analyze the pitfalls so far this season:

  • Scoring at just 2.38 goals a game, and allowing 3.08 goals a game puts them 24th in the league for both stats… not good enough to win.
  • POWERPLAY… where did you go? At one point we were in the +23% range and now…they are at 19.28%.
  • DEFENSE, DEFENSE, DEFENSE… it’s not where it should be. There have been spots of improvement, but consistency is lacking.
  • Playing in your own zone leads to playing more defense, which leads to fatigue and losses. NOT playing in our offensive zone enough-and winning those one on one battles without dumping the puck or losing possession are vital.
  • We have defensemen like Michalek and Stone (who leads the league in blocks) stepping up, but if we play in our offensive zone more we won’t need those efforts as often.
  • The team needs to acquire that ‘killer’ instinct to finish off teams when they have the lead. This has got to do with staying with the game plan.

 Listen to Coach Dave Tippett’s press conference after the Coyote’s loss to Calgary. He sounds like a coach wondering what else he can do to get his team going.

He’s a good NHL coach, and now maybe he needs some new players to play in his system… which, for those who remember, has been known to work.  I think he is crying out for some help here… right? Notice how Dave comments when asked about possible changes to the team. It’s not up to him, it’s up to the guys upstairs.

(I’d look to Toronto or Edmonton, who both have a few really talented scorers, but lack two-way forwards. A guy like Hanzal or Vermette could really help them, and a scorer like Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, or even a Tyler Bozak/Nazem Kadri?James van Riemsdyk would help the Coyotes. Am I alone on this?)

This team will be at a crossroads soon, in my opinion. They either improve quickly, or the future of this franchise may suffer. By suffer, I mean the franchise may not be here. Keep losing games the way they have been losing, and they won’t get fans in the seats. Fewer fans in the seats means that five year limit of losing $50 million is looking the owners square in the face. It’s your move management, put up, or give up- and hope for a good draft position. The team’s destiny is in your hands, and we as fans hope you make the correct decision.

Perhaps, with the new Barroway ownership soon to take place, he will see the need to improve this team — that is still to be determined. Once Mr. Barroway’s deal gets *hopefully* voted into approval, it will be interesting to see the moves he makes. Must be fun to have millions of dollars to buy a sports franchise, and then shape it as you like. I think I’d love doing that! WHO WOULDN’T?

This team needs some spark, more like what Tobias Rieder has shown. Take some chances, look what Calgary did with Johnny Gaudreau. It has paid off good dividends. Make the veterans who may think they have a spot on this team sewn up — bring in more talent, and maybe the current core will begin produce like the professionals they are once more.

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