Arizona Coyotes Play Disciplined Hockey in Win Over Islanders
The Arizona Coyotes have won twice at home in impressive fashion and now take their “road warrior” mojo on the road to Dallas and St. Louis.
In another nail-biter of a game, the Coyotes put together a solid effort and beat the powerful New York Islanders 2 to 1 at Gila River Arena in a matinee game on Monday afternoon.
The fans could never really feel at ease during this game, as the Islanders seemed to pressure the ‘Yotes all day long in the defensive zone. The “D” men played well in front of some stalwart goalkeeping by Antti Raanta, but it was obvious that the Islanders figured that it was only a matter of time before they would wear down the Coyotes and take over the game. Well, it didn’t happen.
Despite giving the New Yorker’s several power-play chances through some silly penalties, the Coyotes were able to protect their one-goal lead and managed an impressive win. In the process, they gained confidence in knowing that their style of play can be effective when played with focus and discipline.
More from Howlin' Hockey
- How the Arizona Coyotes could line-up with Logan Cooley signed
- Report: Logan Cooley could be closer to signing Arizona Coyotes ELC
- Arizona Coyotes sign Matias Maccelli to three-year deal
- Ivan Prosvetov signs one-year deal with Arizona Coyotes
- Arizona Coyotes cut Galchenyuk after reported police incident
The Coyotes have now won two successive games at GRA, giving up two goals while scoring five. But it’s the way they won, namely by playing their disciplined style of defensive hockey as a group against two Eastern Conference powerhouses that is really impressive.
Who expected the ‘Yotes to gain 4 points in the first 2 games of an essential cluster of six, the results of which could very well dictate their playoff future? What great effort was put forth and has now given the Arizona road warriors some much-needed mojo to battle the Dallas Stars and St. Louis Blues!
Although we can’t yet say that the Coyotes are on a legitimate winning streak quite yet, they are trending upward at a time when teams both above and below them in the Western Conference standings are upwardly mobile too. The advantage that some opponents have is that in many cases they have games in hand. The Nashville Predators (65 points), who have won 3 games in a row, are preying on the ‘Yotes and a wild card spot and have 4 games in hand. The Winnipeg Jets (65 points) have played 2 fewer games than the Coyotes. The Minnesota Wild (61 points), who swept the Coyotes this season, have four games in hand and are not out of the wild card hunt. Alas, even the Chicago Blackhawks (61 points) have 3 games in hand
The Coyotes (68 points in 62 games) only have 20 games remaining, making the tilts in Dallas on Wednesday and St. Louis on Thursday almost necessary to win. They are indeed in a precarious position, as not only are they trying to improve their positioning in the standings but have to watch over their shoulders to see who’s gaining on them.
When all is said and done, the only thing the Coyotes have any control over are their efforts, and if they’re effective in that, their ultimate results will look very promising. Let’s go Coyotes!