Arizona Coyotes have all the pieces now it is up to the team
By Jim Lynch
When you look at the roster in Arizona one thing is certain. This team is set up to succeed. John Chayka has done everything he could to make this team a playoff team this spring.
Arizona rarely has had a team good enough to make the playoffs, in fact during their 22 seasons so far in Arizona they have only made the playoffs 8 times. Those are not very good numbers, especially when you consider some of the stars the Coyotes have had like Shane Doan and Mike Smith.
The Coyotes have been known as a team willing to take on salary in the past and have not really been a real threat around the NHL, however, those years are over. Look at the roster Arizona has today. For the first time in a long time, we have a real playoff-caliber team on the ice in front of us. Whether it be players like Hjalmarsson, Kessel, Ekman-Larsson, or Hall we have players that have been to the playoffs before, and those players do not even include much of our future core.
The Coyotes are built on Clayton Keller, Nick Schmaltz, and Christian Dvorak. They are the future of this team, and there are so many other players who have a big role. The key to making the playoffs and having success is making sure everyone feels like they are making an impact every game, and that is set up pretty well in Arizona.
The goalies, Raanta and Kuemper, are always making a difference with key saves at the right time, our defense feels like they are the bread and butter of this team, and our offense is always finding new players to score a big goal at a big time.
Arizona has 7 players above 20 points, and the team is one John Chayka takes pride in. When the Coyotes went out and acquired Taylor Hall they did not trade anyone from their roster, rather they gave away some picks and prospects in order to keep this team intact. Chayka has shown he believes this team is playoff ready by not giving New Jersey anyone from this roster. Now it is up to the players to prove that was the right decision.
Plus, it is not like this team is firing at 100 percent, this team is succeeding without their best defenseman in Niklas Hjalmarsson or their top goalie in Darcy Kuemper. Getting back Hjalmarsson will be like acquiring a big-name player via trade, considering he only played 4 games this season.
The future is bright in Arizona, but there is very little John Chayka can do to improve this team, now it is up to the players to win and show they are the team we hope they are. That starts tonight when the Coyotes face off against Anaheim.