Though I have resigned myself - as I am sure all Coyotes supporters have - the a lack of Playoffs and a rebuild, I still enjoy watching the games - an NHL game is, after all, an NHL game.
No matter what, you usually get some excitement and most teams have a few players worth the price of admission on their own - plus there's the chance to play spoiler....basically there's still reasons to tune in every night even though your team isn't very good.
Usually.
I got nothing personal against the Hurricanes, but they are, historically, not the best team to watch. Sure, I like Eric Staal as much as the next guy, but he doesn't excite me in 2015 the way say getting to watch Tarasenko or Mackinnon does.
So what we had last night was a certified Battle of the Duds.....
And it did not disappoint.
Now, don't get me wrong here: it was a hard fought game and if the two teams were batting for something other than a lower spot in the standings, it might have been good just due to the stakes - I am not inherently against a low scoring game.
However, when its 27th vs 28th place - or whatever - there are no stakes and you just hope for some offense or a bench clearing brawl.
Hopefully both.
This game had neither.
What it did have was an amazing performance by Mike Smith, who stopped 39 of the 40 shots sent his way.
Other than that, both goals were scored by fourth liners minutes into the first period and then we were treated to 55 minutes of sloppy hockey, bad defense (by Arizona, at least) some good goaltending and a shootout.
It was...a game.
Then there was a shoot-out, which, like outdoor games, Alias and your goatee were cooler back in 2005. Personally since I barely cared who won and had to get up early, I felt the shoot-out was just inconvenient.
It also made me look forward to the continuous OT of the Playoffs.
All in all, I guess I am happy that the Coyotes only got one point.