Five storylines to watch when Coyotes face Ducks
The Coyotes were off for the past three days, affording players and coaches time to spend with their families, time to rest aching bodies and time to regroup for what would be a long climb back into playoff contention.
Here are five storylines to watch as the Coyotes get set to face the Western Conference-leading Ducks for the third time this season.
Who's in goal? Devan Dubnyk won his seventh game Tuesday in Edmonton to improve to 7-3-2 with a .920 save percentage and a 2.65 goals against average. Mike Smith allowed four goals on 11 shots in Vancouver on Monday before getting pulled. He is 5-15-2 with a 3.48 goals against average and an .884 save percentage. The Coyotes keep trying to get Smith right, but at this point, how do they justify not letting Dubnyk start, given the disparity in their success?
The penalty kill: Arizona has allowed 12 power play goals on its opponents' last 39 chances (69.2 percent) to drop the unit to 29th in the NHL at 75.2 percent. The Coyotes did kill all six Edmonton opportunities on Tuesday, providing a ray of hope that this group has solved some its issues. Coaches will tell you the PK is a good indicator of how well a team is playing defense overall. There is much room for improvement.
DUCKS at COYOTES
When: 6 p.m. Saturday
Where: Gila River Arena, Glendale
Records: Ducks 23-8-5, Coyotes 12-18-4
Season series: 1-1.
Injuries: Arizona: F Lauri Korpikoski (lower body) is on injured reserve. D Chris Summers (upper body) is day to day. Anaheim: F Corey Perry (knee) and D Francois Beauchemin (finger) are on injured reserve but could come off and play in this game. F Kyle Palmieri (shoulder) and D Eric Brewer (foot) are on injured reserve. F Tim Jackman (head) is day to day.
Quick facts: The Ducks have overcome myriad injuries this season to sit atop the NHL standings at the Christmas break. They also own an eight-point lead in the Pacific Division over the second-place Sharks. ... Anaheim is 17-0-5 in one-goal games. ... Center Ryan Getzlaf leads the team with 39 points (fifth in the NHL) and 27 assists (tied for third in the NHL). Getzlaf has six goals and 15 points in 12 games without Perry in the lineup.
The roster: The NHL's holiday roster freeze ends at midnight on Dec. 27. Arizona has been rumored in various deals and GM Don Maloney is keen to shake up the mix, but he may also be waiting for Andrew Barroway to complete his purchase of a majority stake in the team -- a move that could come before the end of the year but is expected by at least early January.
Pacific blues: After starting 6-1 against its own division, Arizona is just 3-6 in its last nine division games, with all three wins coming against Edmonton. Getting back into playoff contention starts with competing within the division.
Yandle magic: Keith Yandle has eight goals and 27 points in 35 career games against the Ducks. Those numbers include a goal and an assist in the first two meetings between the clubs this season.
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