Coyotes News

"Hollywood producer Oren Koules and his partner Len Barrie have secured financing on their $206 million (all figures U.S.) purchase of the Tampa Bay Lightning... With the Lightning ownership closer to being settled, several industry executives say attention will now shift to the Phoenix Coyotes, who are said to be losing upwards of $30 million a season."

"Four years ago, Kevin Porter figured going to college made more sense than signing a pro contract. His instincts were on target. Porter, a fourth-round draft pick of the Coyotes in 2004, improved his overall game at Michigan, moved to a new position and led the team to the Frozen Four last week."

"The Coyotes have signed forward Kevin Porter, winner of the 2008 Hobey Baker Award as college hockey's top player, to an entry level contract. Terms of the deal were not disclosed."

"Rookie center Kyle Turris, who played the last three games, had an assist and a shootout goal. He said the goal, although not an official point provided a boost of confidence. As soon as Turris arrived from the Wisconsin, coach Wayne Gretzky teamed him with Shane Doan and Peter Mueller and put him on a power-play unit. The total responsibility, he said, was a lucky break for him. He said he learned a lot from the pair in his short time in Phoenix. "I was really lucky and thankful for my opportunity here," he said."

"Right wing Radim Vrbata, who tailed off toward the end of the season but still had the best offensive output of his career, is hoping for a quick resolution in his unrestricted free-agent status."

"Goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov, clean-shaven, feisty and wearing a blinding striped shirt, had some parting shots as he cleaned out his locker and looked ahead to next season:"

"Success isn't measured in championships for long-struggling teams. The Coyotes, who failed to make the playoffs for the fifth consecutive season, were disappointed that they fell short again, but there is a sense of optimism that hasn't been around the organization in years."

"Whether Vrbata re-signs (both sides have indicated they'd like to get a deal done) will partially determine how active Phoenix is in the free agent market. But with a commitment to building from within and key restricted free agents like Carcillo all but guaranteed to be back, the Coyotes don't see much need for outside help."

"Chris Pronger made a largely quiet return to the lineup for the Ducks' regular-season finale Sunday against the Phoenix Coyotes. For the Ducks' sake, that's good and bad. The towering defenseman didn't factor in their 3-2 shootout win but he also didn't do anything to hurt their cause. For him, the game was about getting back up to speed in anticipation of the Dallas Stars, who'll come to the Honda Center for Game 1 of the Western Conference quarterfinals Thursday night."

"For the Ducks, it was nice to see slapshots on net traveling three-quarters the length of the ice Sunday, a sure sign that Chris Pronger was back in the lineup. It was nice to see the team amp up its effort in a situation that scarcely demanded it - trailing 2-0 late in a meaningless third period - to wrench out a 3-2 shootout victory over the Phoenix Coyotes. "

"A bittersweet season comes to an end on the road Sunday when the Coyotes face defending Stanley Cup champion Anaheim. It was a season that most outside the organization had written off, one in which the accepted scenario was that an inexperienced team would struggle to win 30 games. "

" So while Dallas' 4-2 loss to the Coyotes at American Airlines Center cost the Stars the chance to fight for fourth place and home ice in the first round of the playoffs, the real concern was the fact that the team has some work to do before it starts the postseason in Anaheim next week."

"Trevor Daley and Philippe Boucher scored, but the Stars could never get the advantage in a 4-2 loss to the Coyotes at the American Airlines Center. The Stars, who were clinging to a slim chance for home ice entering this one, will instead start their first-round NHL playoff series with the Ducks in Anaheim."

"The NHL's youngest team got a little younger Thursday night as Coyotes fans got a glimpse of the future. No. 1 draft choices from the past three seasons were on the ice at Jobing.com Arena, as rookies Martin Hanzal (20) and Peter Mueller (19) were joined by 18-year-old Kyle Turris, making his professional debut. The Stars scored three goals in the second period, including two on power plays, and beat the Coyotes 4-2."

"Dave Tippett wanted to make one thing clear – the Dallas Stars were not sandbagging when they sat Mike Ribeiro (flu-like symptoms) and Brad Richards (general soreness) on Thursday night at Jobing.com Arena. "Are we resting people for the playoffs? No, we are not, not even close," Tippett said before the game. "If they were healthy enough to play, they would be playing." The Stars proved Tippett right in a 4-2 win over the Phoenix Coyotes. "

"For one thing, the Coyotes are no longer the NHL?s punching bag. They exceeded last year?s win total and points total weeks ago and remained in playoff contention for much of the year. More important, they did so with a group of youngsters ? Peter Mueller, Martin Hanzal, Keith Ballard, Zbynek Michalek, etc. ? who should get better as they get older. You can add one other name to that list: goaltender Ilya Brzgalov. No team can contend for a Stanley Cup without a first-class goalie, and Phoenix finally has one."

"Blake Wheeler, the Coyotes' first-round draft pick in 2004, says he is still deciding whether to turn pro or return to the University of Minnesota for his senior season. He said he would weigh his options over the next several weeks. He said he really enjoys college life, and despite not winning a championship feels he has had a satisfying career."

"The Coyotes find themselves in what might be viewed as a win-win situation entering the last thee games of the season. They will be trying to win out and wind up with 86 points, a 19-point increase from a year ago. If they stumble the next three games, however, all is not lost. The teams on their heels could win out, and the Coyotes could wind up with a top-five draft pick. As of now, the Coyotes have six picks in the first three rounds."

"Throughout his hockey career, Kyle Turris has shown the ability to overcome obstacles. His biggest one to date is getting closer. On Thursday, the 18-year-old, fresh off the campus after one season at the University of Wisconsin, will be lining up against Dallas in his first professional game."

"And when speaking about Kyle Turris - the team's No. 1 pick (third overall) in the 2007 entry draft - "hope" and "future" are the two key words. He signed a three-year, $2.625 million entry-level contract Monday and will join the team Tuesday for practice. This season does not count as one of the three years. "

"A day after his highly successful freshman season at the University of Wisconsin ended, Coyotes top prospect Kyle Turris decided it was time to turn pro. Turris signed a three-year entry level contract Monday which will pay him a base salary of $875,000 per year and includes performance bonuses."

"Ryane Clowe was understandably a little nervous as he drove to HP Pavilion on Sunday... Turns out he had nothing to worry about. With Clowe getting an assist 14 seconds into the game and leading all players with six hits, the Sharks kept their streak alive with a solid 3-1 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes."

"Phoenix is looking to close the season on a high note after a 4-0 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday. "

"Erik Ersberg is showing the Los Angeles Kings he is ready for the NHL. Anze Kopitar had a goal and two assists and Ersberg made 38 saves as the Kings earned a 4-0 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes on Thursday night. Ersberg earned his second career shutout in his 10th NHL start, all in the past month. Ersberg also shut out the Ottawa Senators 2-0 on March 6. "

"Instead of a playoff race, the Kings have seemed better suited for a soap box derby this season. After a rolling start, it has been all downhill. For one rare night, however, the Kings stepped on the gas from start to finish against the Phoenix Coyotes, scoring three goals in a six-minute span of the second period Thursday night to supply goaltender Erik Ersberg with some much-needed wiggle room in the 4-0 victory at Staples Center."

"Breaking down the first Coyotes goal in Tuesday night's 5-4 overtime victory against San Jose reveals that a basic tenet of hockey - never quit battling for a loose puck - set in motion a sequence of events that led to the game's first goal by Derek Morris. "

"Hanzal's goal, coming with 1:37 left in overtime, lifted the Coyotes to a 5-4 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday night at Jobing.com Arena before a crowd of 15,991. "

" Trailing 3-0 early in the third period, San Jose managed to force overtime before losing 5-4 to the Phoenix Coyotes on a goal by center Martin Hanzal at the 3:23 mark of the extra period."

"The Sharks are 4-1-0-1 against the Coyotes, outscoring them 16-1 in the four victories but capturing only one point in the two games since Phoenix acquired G Ilya Bryzgalov. The teams haven't met since Jan. 15."

"Radim Vrbata, the Coyotes' leading-goal scorer, is mired in a slump but he believes he's playing the same way he did earlier in the year when his was scoring key goals. He has set career highs in goals (27) and assists (28) but has not put one in the net in the past 16 games, a streak he hopes to break tonight when the Coyotes host the San Jose Sharks."

"Despite a stellar defensive effort in the bid to accomplish the near-impossible task of sneaking into the postseason, the Coyotes once again came up short at Jobing.com Arena, losing 2-1 before a crowd of 17,645. "

"Saturday night the Ducks took the ice without Jean-Sebastien Giguere, the NHL's second-stingiest goaltender, and Ryan Getzlaf, their leading scorer. And they responded with a brilliant performance by Jonas Hiller in goal and two goals from Teemu Selanne to beat the Phoenix Coyotes, 2-1, moving within a point of clinching a playoff berth."

"Add Saturday night's 2-1 triumph over the Phoenix Coyotes to a lengthy list of less-than-picturesque victories since Feb. 5, when right wing Teemu Selanne returned to the lineup after having sat out most of the season while contemplating retirement."

"Coyotes rookie right wing Enver Lisin faced a tough transition last year, and he decided to return to Russia instead of reporting to San Antonio of the American Hockey League. Now 21 and more grounded, Lisin is beginning to hone his skill on the ice, and he says he's playing with more confidence."

"Coach Wayne Gretzky knows his team has to come with its best effort Saturday against the Anaheim Ducks, or it could get ugly."

"The Hanson brothers will be at Jobing.com Arena Saturday night - and there couldn't be a better place for them. The stars of the 1977 film Slap Shot probably will think they have found a soul mate in Coyotes rookie Daniel Carcillo, who leads the NHL with 299 penalty minutes."

"One point is better than none, but for the Coyotes' fading Western Conference playoff hopes, was it enough? The Coyotes dropped a 6-5 shootout to the Los Angeles Kings before a crowd of 14,852 at Jobing.com Arena on Thursday night."

"Coach Wayne Gretzky expects the Coyotes, who suffered a devastating blow to their playoff hopes this week, to continue their up-tempo pace and play hard to the end of the season. His logic is simple: They're auditioning for next season."

"Setting a personal best was bittersweet - at best - for Coyotes captain Shane Doan. He scored a goal and added an assist in an 8-4 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night, giving him 70 points this season. He had 68 points in 2003-04 season and with 25 goals is five shy of his personal best, set in 2005-06. But with only eight games left in the season, the loss was devastating to the team's playoff hopes. "

"Take the power play, which struck for three goals in Tuesday's 8-4 win over the Phoenix Coyotes. It was not only the seventh consecutive game that the Oilers have scored at least once with the man advantage, this is the same unit that was ranked 27th in the National Hockey League on March 4."

" The rookies and near-rookies combined for a whopping 13 points last night in leading Edmonton to a crucial 8-4 decision over the Phoenix Coyotes at Rexall Place."

"Ilya Bryzgalov had an off night, but that's nothing compared to his country. When it comes to goaltending, Russia has had an off half century. "

"The NHL has its destroyers (Georges Laraque), true heavies (Jody Shelley, Derek Boogaard) and agitators like Zack Stortini of the Edmonton Oilers and Daniel Carcillo of the Phoenix Coyotes."

"The Coyotes may try to sign centre Kyle Turris, their top pick in the 2007 NHL entry draft. But they have to wait until this weekend when the University of Wisconsin will find out if they get an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament."

"The 10-game regular-season countdown has begun for the Vancouver Canucks and while it's too early to say whether we will have final liftoff toward the playoffs, the signs Monday night were at least encouraging. In their final game of the season against the rest of the league before they play their last nine versus Northwest Division foes, the Canucks displayed grit in spades and beat the Phoenix Coyotes 3-1 at General Motors Place."

"Reversal of fortune. That was the plan and the Vancouver Canucks executed it to near perfection Monday in a pivotal 3-1 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes at GM Place."

"Two goals by a slumping Henrik Sedin and another by Taylor Pyatt, who had gone 19 games without scoring, allowed the Canucks to subdue Phoenix 3-1."

"The Coyotes are coming off a 2-3 homestand, but one of those wins was 2-0 over Vancouver. The Coyotes are 10th in the West, five points behind the Canucks and Flames."

"The jump in his stride and the look in his eye says it all about the rejuvenated Ed Jovanovski. "It's my second year here and I'm living in my own house and everything has kind of settled down," said the Phoenix Coyotes defenceman... Finally free of injury, Jovanovski is having a career season with 49 points, seventh among all NHL blueliners. He has also embraced a leadership role in hopes of getting the more youthful Coyotes into the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in five seasons."

"But they failed to capitalize on home ice, dropping a 5-2 decision before a crowd of 17,947. The Coyotes, who were unable to get in a good rhythm, compounded their problems with lapses in concentration. Edmonton added to the woes by winning battles for loose pucks and playing with more discipline."

"Those Edmonton Oilers who took part in the optional morning skate yesterday marveled at how good the ice was at Jobing.com Arena. Then later that night, they skated circles around the Phoenix Coyotes on their way to a 5-2 victory. "

""What's the big deal? We've circled (Ilya) Bryzgalov in our room," joked MacTavish after the Oilers defeated the Coyotes 5-2 at Jobing.com Arena on Saturday night."

"Unless Vancouver, Calgary or Minnesota fall on their visors, the Coyotes’ gallant playoff rush could come up just short of introducing Glendale to its first Whiteout. But no matter what happens over the final 10 games, 2007-08 has been an unqualified success, and the future of this franchise is as bright as any Valley pro team."

"Wayne Gretzky knows a thing or two about scoring goals. Yesterday the greatest offensive player in the history of the game weighed in on Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin, whose 57 goals leads the league this season. "

"The Coyotes go for their third consecutive home win Saturday against a team four points behind them in the Western Conference - but one that has overcome a lot of adversity to get there. The Edmonton Oilers have battled through injuries, and Wayne Gretzky is impressed. "

"Coyotes coach Wayne Gretzky took exception to the 10-minute misconduct penalty called on Daniel Carcillo following his fight with Vancouver's Alex Burrows on Thursday night."

"Martin Hanzal joked that the Coyotes' head athletic therapist, Chris Broadhurst, deserved a star. No one would argue the point after Thursday night's 2-0 victory over the Vancouver Canucks in front of a crowd of 15,562 at Jobing.com Arena. " 'Broadway' did a great job," said Hanzal, who had two assists, his second coming when he stole the puck near the red line, weaved down the ice and hit fellow rookie Daniel Winnik with a perfect pass with 12:08 remaining. "

"Half-empty building. Half-empty team. There is something missing in the Vancouver Canucks -- and not just goals -- as the erratic National Hockey League team failed to utilize its road-ice advantage, failed to respond to a poor performance the previous night and failed to score against the Phoenix Coyotes, who beat them 2-0 here Thursday."

"It's only going to get louder. What's wrong with the Sedin twins? The two forwards who have carried the Canucks offence so much of the season were shut out again and that was the good news. The bad news is they looked as bad as they have all season doing it. They were stapled to the boards, knocked off their skates and were both on the ice for two Phoenix goals in a 2-0 loss to the Coyotes that does some Scud missile-like damage to Vancouver's playoff chances."

"They've always had their share of veterans, but it's the kids who are allowing the Phoenix Coyotes to dream big. When Daniel Winnik scored the insurance goal in the third period Thursday to ice a 2-0 victory over the Vancouver Canucks, it spoke of how the organization has learned to not lean heavily on desert dogs who are long in the tooth."

"The Coyotes may not have to win their last 12 games of the season to ensure a playoff berth, but even if that turns out to be the scenario, don't count them out, goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov says. With a dozen games left and sitting in 10th place in the Western Conference, the Coyotes need a lot of things to fall into place to move two spots. Task No. 1 is defeating Vancouver, which is in the eighth spot, tonight at Jobing .com Arena."

"What everyone will be watching: The Canucks' energy level. Here's where it gets tough. After playing in Anaheim on Wednesday night, the Canucks will have to try and beat a plucky Coyotes team that has surprised this year. Phoenix has a great mix of youth and veterans who are more than capable of knocking out a wobbled Canucks team."

"The Coyotes forward, watching as Peter Mueller stormed the net to open a shootout for the Coyotes, picked up some valuable tips from studying the rookie's missed attempt. Vrbata was a quick study, and it paid off with a goal, the only one in the shootout, propelling the Coyotes to a 3-2 victory over the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night in front of a crowd of 14,683 at Jobing.com Arena."

"Much like their first game against each other in January, Giguere and Bryzgalov matched each other save for save before Radim Vrbata's decisive goal in the shootout gave the Phoenix Coyotes a 3-2 victory at Jobing.com Arena."

"A lot of sports fans, especially youngsters who dream of a professional career, tend to identify with the star players or kids with the "can't-miss" label. True inspiration, however, can came from a journeyman player or one who has beaten the odds by battling for years at lower levels before making it to the big time."

"The top three scorers will be on the same line tonight as the Coyotes try to snap out of their offensive malaise and pursue their slim playoff hopes. Rookie Peter Mueller will move back to center and be joined by wings Shane Doan and Radim Vrbata. The trio has combined for 70 goals and 165 points. "

"Johnson, a defenseman who played 13 seasons in the NHL, wound up his career with the Coyotes in their first two seasons in Arizona. He was instrumental in forming the P.F. Chang's hockey organization and is a founding member of FlexxCoach.com, a company that educates coaches on how to teach fundamental skills to youth players."

"The Coyotes, unable to hold a lead and let down by their specialty teams, dropped a 4-2 decision to the Ottawa Senators in front of a crowd of 16,922 at Jobing.com Arena. They are 14-17-3 on home ice, the worst mark in the NHL."

"Finally, the Ottawa Senators can look in the mirror and be happy to see themselves. They salvaged an otherwise miserable road trip by defeating the Phoenix Coyotes 4-2 Saturday night."

" Just when it looked like they were going to finish this swing through the Western Conference as road kill, the Senators ended their three-game skid with a 4-2 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes last night."

"A big part of coaching at this time of year, when National Hockey League teams are trying to earn or consolidate playoff berths, is managing what happens between the ears. Phoenix Coyotes coach Wayne Gretzky tried some mind games with his players yesterday."