The Arizona Coyotes are allowing the Oilers to begin a winning streak of their own.
For a while, one thing Arizona Coyotes fans could hang their hats on was dominance of Edmonton over the past several years.
Earlier this season, we saw that heady streak come to a halt.
Now it appears the Coyotes on-ice ineptitude could allow the Oilers to begin a streak of their own, with the Canadian team getting it’s second straight win over Arizona.
The hallmarks of the 3-1 defeat were typical for what we’ve seen throughout this trying season; turnovers a-plenty and an inability to generate clean shots on net.
Those two factors lead inevitably to the continuance of a season long scoring deficit that now finds the Coyotes at -45 in goal differential on the season, which is second worst in the NHL.
It’s a growing season with growing pains, but some of the mistakes the team is making are repetitive and do not appear to be something some players are going to grow out of.
Turnovers
Ill-timed turnovers have been the bane of the Arizona Coyotes for several seasons.
Such was the case again on Monday night.
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When the team attempts to break out of the defensive zone or progress through the neutral zone, there is still an over-reliance on forcing passes that do not need to be made instead of skating with the puck when there is real estate.
As the weight of another losing season weighs down on their shoulders, it seems like some players are pressing and attempting to create plays or opportunities where none can be found.
An emphasis on making the simple pass and the simple play would go a long way towards rectifying the team’s breakout and neutral zone woes.
It would also help the youth gain a little confidence going into next season.
Shots On Net
The Coyotes are damned if they do and damned if they don’t.
Most nights they cannot generate enough shots to pass muster. Other nights, like the Oilers matchup and Anaheim game, see the team firing shots but not finding the net.
Against Anaheim it was due to inaccuracy. Edmonton, on the other hand, were blocking the shots.
We’ve learned over the past several years that outshooting your opponent on a nightly basis is a recipe for winning more games than you lose.
The Yotes are bearing that out the past three seasons, as they are too often on the wrong side of the ledger and have the record to show for it.
Youth Getting Some Seasoning
It wasn’t a great game from a Coyotes perspective, but one thing stood out.
There was a mountain of praise for Christian Dvorak‘s effort.
Whether you checked Twitter during the game or forums afterward, fans continue to be impressed by his growth this season.
Before the season, I suggested Dvorak would start slow offensively and begin to put it together in his second or third season in the same way Aleksander Barkov did.
Next: Perlini Proving He Belongs In The NHL
We aren’t sure yet if Dvo’s scoring in junior will translate to the pro game.
We do know that whether he’s a strong third line center or something higher up the depth chart moving forward, he’s looking like a good player to have around.