The Coyotes were dusted by the Flames on Sunday, whatcha gonna do?
The thing to talk about today is Connor Garland. With all the injuries and disappointing play, it's nice to finally have something positive to talk about here.
Cursed with the name that every single one of the Ashleys and Jessicas and Kristinas of the 80s all thought was a good name for a baby, Connor, or, I guess Conor (cause he's edgy) Garland is overcoming that adversity to make a name for himself in the NHL.
Born in 1996, an early adapter of the Connor Trend, Mr. Garland is 22 and was drafted way back in 2015, in the third round.
He is skilled but small, and while he destroyed the QMJHL he struggled to score in the AHL with 13 goals in his first 110 games.
This year he had eight in 18, and he got a call up. Since then, he's also scored 8 goals in 18 NHL games. Not too bad!
So far, Garland looks pretty good - he's got a 51% possession rating, and when he is on the ice, the Coyotes get more shots, scoring chances and goals.
He even scored with his face, so Ron Swanson respects him too, which is a bonus. Even better than scoring a face goal? Returning to the game and scoring again. With your stick.
I rate that about six Almeidas.
The most impressive thing about Garland is that the stats he has are good, but he was scorless in his first seven games.
He has ten points in his last 11 games.
That isn't going to last, but if he keeps up the good peripherals and can chip in once in a while, he'll be a great addition to the team.
The Coyotes need to add skill wherever they can get it, and after all their recent first round flops, it'd be nice to see a later pick become a key cog in the lineup.
I don't know if that's likely, but it's been fun to watch Garland at a time when it's not necessarily been that fun to watch the team in general.
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