Howlin' Hockey
Fansided

How the Coyotes stack up with other Pacific Division teams

By Jim Lynch

GLENDALE, ARIZONA - NOVEMBER 07: Phil Kessel #81 of the Arizona Coyotes congratulates teammate Carl Soderberg #34 after Soderberg's goal against the Columbus Blue Jackets during the first period at Gila River Arena on November 07, 2019 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/NHLI via Getty Images)
GLENDALE, ARIZONA - NOVEMBER 07: Phil Kessel #81 of the Arizona Coyotes congratulates teammate Carl Soderberg #34 after Soderberg's goal against the Columbus Blue Jackets during the first period at Gila River Arena on November 07, 2019 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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GLENDALE, ARIZONA – OCTOBER 10: Paul Stastny #26 of the Vegas Golden Knights sets up in front of goaltender Darcy Kuemper #35 of the Arizona Coyotes during the second period of the NHL game at Gila River Arena on October 10, 2019 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
GLENDALE, ARIZONA – OCTOBER 10: Paul Stastny #26 of the Vegas Golden Knights sets up in front of goaltender Darcy Kuemper #35 of the Arizona Coyotes during the second period of the NHL game at Gila River Arena on October 10, 2019 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

The Gold:

Vancouver Canucks, Arizona Coyotes, Vegas Golden Knights

Maybe this is just wishful thinking, but I have the Arizona Coyotes in the gold tier within the division. The Coyotes have been great all season, and have competed within the Pacific teams despite having 2 games in hand.

Arizona has been led by players like Nick Schmaltz, Christian Dvorak, and Michael Grabner. Their goaltending has been superb and the team seems to have found a groove. Similar to the other teams in the gold tier.

Vancouver is another young team with players like Quinn Hughes, Elias Pettersson, and Brock Boeser all putting up points for the Canucks. I could see the Vancouver Canucks and Arizona Coyotes meet in the second round of the playoffs, that is unless the Knights have something to say about it.

The Vegas Golden Knights is the team to beat in the Pacific Division. In my opinion, they are built like a super team, with players like Max Pacioretty, Mark Stone, Paul Stastny, Cody Glass, and Reilly Smith. I believe they are built for the playoffs, so even if they do not have the best regular-season record it won’t matter.

Vegas is built to out-power you and beat you in those best of 7 series, they will squeeze their way into the playoffs, and when they do watch out.

With all this in mind, I hope you see how wide open the Pacific Division is. Arizona has a chance to make the playoffs for the first time in a long time, it is going to take a lot of work to get there though.

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