Coyotes Head North To Face Jets
The Arizona Coyotes continue their eight-game road trip on Sunday night when they head north to Manitoba to take on the sizzling Winnipeg Jets.
The Coyotes are coming off a tough 3-1 loss in Minnesota on Saturday. This loss extends their current losing streak to four games. Antoine Vermette had the only goal for Arizona on the power play. Keith Yandle had his team-leading 24th assist.
Although Mike Smith took the loss, he looked more confident and sure of himself. Minnesota handled the pace for most of the game and gave Smith enough shots to work with. Smith stopped 30 of 32 shots fired at him.
Jan 17, 2015; Saint Paul, MN, USA; Arizona Coyotes goalie Mike Smith (41) makes a save during the second period against the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Marilyn Indahl-USA TODAY Sports
Arizona (16-24-4) are awaiting the results of how captain Shane Doan feels during his warmup skate. He’s currently a game-time decision. Head coach Dave Tippett is looking for a more consistent effort to keep games competitive.
"“We had stretches where I thought we competed very hard and stretches where I thought we weren’t very competitive.”"
Tonight’s opponent, the Winnipeg Jets, have been absolutely on fire ever since losing in Arizona on January 8th. Over the last five games, they’ve gone 4-0-1.
Winnipeg’s most recent game was a 4-2 victory in Chicago on Friday night. Bryan Little and Andrew Ladd both had a goal and assist each. Meanwhile, Blake Wheeler and Dustin Byfuglien each had two assists.
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Winnipeg’s offensive provides various names to look out for. Little and Ladd are tied for the team lead in goals (17) while Wheeler leads the Jets in assists (23). One of NHL’s hottest players, Mathieu Perreault, won’t be in the lineup due to an upper body injury.
Winnipeg (24-14-8) offer plenty of skaters that are on hot streaks. Over his last nine games, Ladd has five goals and six assists. Little has five goals and ten assists over his last 13 games. Byfuglien has two goals and six assists over his last five games. Evander Kane has recently returned to the lineup with three goals over his last four games.
Projected goaltenders for tonight’s game will be Arizona’s Smith and Winnipeg’s Ondrej Pavelec. The puck will drop for the Coyotes and Jets at 5 PM MST from Winnipeg.