SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coyotes coach Dave Tippett isn't ready to announce who his goalie will be for Wednesday's game against the Edmonton Oilers at Gila River Arena.
"Both of them had real good work days today," Tippett said after Monday's light practice at the Ice Den. "We'll get back to serious practice tomorrow at Gila River and we'll determine that (Tuesday)."
Tippett surprised most outsiders when he opted to start backup Devan Dubnyk in the team's second game of the season on Saturday against the Los Angeles Kings. Tippett said not to read too much into that decision -- that the Coyotes wanted to get Dubnyk some work. But given Mike Smith's poor performance in a 6-2, season-opening loss to Winnipeg, and Smith's stellar recent record against the Kings, it was clear Tippett felt he needed to make the move after Smith talked so much about his discomfort against the Jets.
"A couple good days with (goalie coach Sean Burke) have been good for him," Tippett said. "He was real sharp out there (Mon)day."
It has been stated ad nauseam how important Smith's play will be to the Coyotes' fortunes this season -- and it's a good bet to assume he will return to the net on Wednesday now that he has had time to iron out some kinks with Burke.
"The main thing is just feeling good on my skates," Smith said Monday. "I feel like my movements have been mediocre at best and that's been the strong part of my game for a long time.
"It seemed like some of the easy saves in that game (Winnipeg), I struggled with. Some saves that were difficult saves, they felt even harder than they were."
Smith has always emphasized how important working with Burke is to his game, so the Coyotes' heavy preseason load didn't help in that respect.
"With the amount of games that we had, we didn't get the practice time that we usually get," he said. "I'm sure that is part of it. I hadn't had that time to work with Burkie. He was on the road with teams and I was back home skating here."
Smith said it's times like these that remind him how vital productive practice time is to maintaining an edge.
"As soon as you think you've got it you get brought back down to earth pretty quickly," he said. "It's a work in progress. It's never going to be perfect. There are always going to be ups and downs.
"(Shane) Doaner and I always talk about. He's always in my ear about it, (telling me) there's always ebbs and flows and when things are going bad for him I'm telling him the same thing. It's part of being an athlete."
Tippett said after Saturday's game that there was a good chance defenseman David Schlemko and forward Kyle Chipchura would make their season debuts Wednesday against the Oilers. On Monday, Chipchura was skating part of the time between Brandon McMillan and B.J. Crombeen.
Both Chipchura and Schlemko were healthy scratches for the first two games of the season. Tippett said he would decide any changes to the lineup on Tuesday.
The Coyotes assigned forward Justin Hodgman to the Portland Pirates of the AHL on Sunday. Hodgman led the Coyotes with four goals and five points in five preseason games after taking a circuitous route to the NHL by playing in Europe for three years. His four goals were tied for second most among all NHL players, which may have created unrealistic expectations for his potential and role with the Coyotes this season.
"He had a very good camp. Right now it's just a numbers thing," Tippett said. "He's given us every right to believe he can do it here but he's got to keep playing. If he's not going to do it here, he's got to keep playing."
With Antoine Vermette, Martin Hanzal, Sam Gagner and Joe Vitale (or Chipchura) at center, there was no place for Hodgman in the lineup. The Coyotes' decision to keep Gagner at center for now was the critical decision that sealed Hodgman's short-term fate.
However, GM Don Maloney stressed, as he has since final cuts were made, that this season's roster will be fluid. Couple that with the inevitable injuries that come over the course of a season and Hodgman will likely get more cracks at the lineup.
"We need him to stay sharp and reacquaint himself with playing on the smaller ice surface after three years in Europe," Maloney said.
Hodgman did not have to clear waivers so he reported to Portland immediately. The Coyotes did not make a corresponding call-up and Maloney said they will not for the immediate future since the schedule is so light early in the season (two games this week).
Captain Shane Doan was in a happy place after Saturday's win over the L.A. Kings. He did countless meet and greets with family and friends of the Coyotes' various owners, and his son, Carson, was playing in the locker room as Doan spoke abut the impact of Andrew Barroway's 51 percent purchase of the team.
"I think it's unbelievably good," he said. "When you look at where the value of the franchise ($305 million) is at, that's just incredible. It's a testament to the fact that it's a good business decision."
Doan said he was given some information on Barroway recently, so he knew the deal was in the works, but he didn't have many details.
"They kept it hidden pretty well," he said, smiling.
It's impossible to say how much money will be pumped directly into payroll once Barroway takes over. The latter is expected to come later this month when the NHL's Board of Governors approves the sale (likely via fax rather than a meeting) and the requisite paperwork is complete.
There's also the reality that few teams are looking to deal players so early in the season when they're still trying to get a feel for their own rosters. But if the Coyotes are in contention at the trade deadline, Maloney may finally have some freedom. If not, he may be given a place at the gambling table this summer when free agency begins.
"We all want to win as soon as we can, but I want to win really soon," Doan said, referencing his age (38). "When you work so hard at something, when you work so hard for one franchise, you want it to pay off. It would mean so much to win here."
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