The Coyotes defeated the Flames 3-2 last night and by scoring the winner, Shane Doan also collected his 350th career goal. The goal puts Doan (who is also the franchise leader in games played by a margin of over 200) only 29 goals behind all-time franchise leader Dale Howerchuck.
The game began with the Coyotes flying. They outshot the Flames 11-8 in the first and really carried the play, up 2-0 by the end of the period. Despite the strong first, the Coyotes were lucky to be up 2-0, since Klinkhammer, who scored his first goal in 20 games, received an absolute gift as Calgary rookie netminder Joni Ortio made a terrible error with the puck behind his own net which resulted in an empty net tap-in for Klinkhammer.
The Doan goal was not the only milestone of the night, as rookie Chris Summers scored his first NHL goal on a sweet backhand tip-in, while rushing to the net. So far, Summers has been solid in his limited minutes and he really brings a lot of speed to the defense considering that the Coyotes started the year with three players who are not fleet of foot on their defense: Michalak, Morris and Klesla (who refused to report to Buffalo when Washington flipped him there the day after the Erat trade).
Speaking of Morris, he may be slow, but since he returned to the lineup after being a healthy scratch, he has been solid. Last night he broke up two different two-on-ones with his stick in the lane and was a force all night.
Despite a strong first period and a 2-0 lead, the Coyotes were absolutely horrid in the second period. They were out-shot 18-6 and thoroughly outplayed. Only the continued excellent play of Mike Smith allowed them to stay in the game.
While Smith did allow two goals in the second, they were both on the power play and he could hardly be blamed on either of them. Smith has been amazing lately and he is the only reason the Coyotes even stand a chance to make the playoffs. He leads the NHL in games played by a goalie, shots against, saves, and minutes played. If he didn't have such a slow start, he would have to be in the Vezina conversation - he's been that good lately.
Again last night, if it wasn't for Smith, the Coyotes lose, probably 6-2. If it wasn't for a crazy six power plays in a row in the third period, they might have wasted Smith's effort anyways. Basically, Smith kept them in the game until the refs could help them out! His best save of the night was probably at the end of the second period when he stoned Cammalleri in close to preserve the tie.
The win moves the Coyotes into a semi-tie with the Stars for 8th in the conference. The Stars, however, have the tie-breaker and have played two less games.
Some further notes about the game:
- Keith Yandle played a game high 29:11.
- Brandon Mcmillan, even though he only played ten minutes, had a few scoring chances and you can see why Dave Tippet keeps talking about him. He really has been good since he joined the team. Three points in nine games, plus a lot of checking and speed. I really like how fast the Coyotes are with Mcmillan and Summers added to the lineup.
- It was cool to see the Coyotes on Hockey Night in Canada; to see them get a game on the NHL's flagship broadcast is always great because you get to hear some of the best analysts in hockey (excluding Glen Healy, obviously) talk about the Coyotes. Highlights included Ron Maclean talking about how good Brandon Gormley was in his debut and also hearing Healy ironically call out someone for "asking a stupid question" about the Flames and tanking.
In a semi-related note, I took some heat for suggesting yesterday that it was stupid for the Flames not to tank. I feel I should explain - I don't think a team should give up on the season, but I do think that if you have a chance to take a high draft pick, that it is idiotic to win ten meaningless games and then pick 8th or 10th instead of 2nd or 3rd. I mean, the players on Buffalo are clearly trying to win, but management made that impossible, which I think is exactly what a team at the bottom should do.
Brian Burke was quoted as saying he would fire any coach who suggested it on the spot, and I think he is right to say that. He also has eight rookies in his lineup, so it's not like he doesn't know what he's doing. Hell, for all I know, he kept Cammalleri just so he could point to him with eight rookies in his lineup and say "if I was tanking, would I have kept him?" This is one of the smartest guys in the NHL, don't forget. (Note: that's the one and only conspiracy theory I'll ever posit in this column!)
Some people said "look at Edmonton, tanking clearly doesn't work." I looked at Edmonton, and I think it is way too early to make that assumption. Sure, they aren't having a good season, but it's a little early to say that their strategy failed. I wouldn't bet against them winning multiple Cups in the near future, because, let's face it: they are going to have one of the best core groups of players - Hall, Eberle, Yakupov, Perron, Gagner, Nurse, Klefbom, and another top pick - ever assembled in the salary cap era. I don't care if they miss the playoffs next year too, all the Oilers need is patience.
Bottom line, there is more than one way to build a team, I just don't think Calgary does themselves any favors by trying to get a lower pick.
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