Arizona Coyotes: 3 Takeaways From Saturday’s Loss in Winnipeg

Looking back on the Arizona Coyotes loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday.

The Arizona Coyotes (2-5-0) fell 5-3 to the Winnipeg Jets (5-2-1) on Saturday in Winnipeg, making it their fifth loss in seven games. Even worse, Arizona’s record against Winnipeg is now 0-8-2 since the 2011 season.

Here, we’ll look back on some of the major takeaways from the disappointing loss.

3 Takeaways From Arizona Coyotes Loss to Winnipeg on Saturday

1.) Antti Raanta Struggles

Arizona Coyotes goaltender Antti Raanta suffered his worst loss of the season after surrendering a season-high four goals to the Winnipeg Jets. Raanta, who has been a beacon of consistency since joining the Coyotes last season, had his worst start of the 2018-19 campaign. Winnipeg goaltender Laurent Brossoit was by far the better of the two keepers, turning away 42 of the Coyotes’ 45 shots as he carried Winnipeg to its fifth win of the young season. Raanta now posts a 2-4-0 record, with a 2.32 GAA and a .911 SV% through six starts this season.

https://twitter.com/NHLJets/status/1053784062899425280

2.) Clayton Keller is Heating up 

Arizona Coyotes star Clayton Keller continued his great play as of late, scoring two highlight reel goals past Jets’ backup Laurent Brossoit. Keller’s impressive play seems to have been sparked by the promotion of Lawson Crouse to the top line, a move that Coach Rick Tochett categorized as a “gut-feeling-move.” The former first-round pick now has four points in his last two games and looks to have found the form that had him in the Calder trophy debate for the majority of last season.

3.) Strome Demoted

It wasn’t the move that Coyotes fans were anticipating, but after a rough start to the 2018-19 season, Dylan Strome found himself centering the fourth line between Richard Panik & Josh Archibald. A tough start for Strome has landed the former third overall pick in Coach Tochett’s doghouse. Strome, who played just over 14 minutes Saturday afternoon, continued to struggle offensively leaving him with just one point through the teams first 7 games. Although Strome still saw his fair share of time on the team’s top powerplay unit, it is concerning to see him so far down the lineup this early in the season. Look for Coach Tochett to pair the struggling Perlini & Strome with offseason acquisition Alex Galchenyuk once he returns to the Coyotes lineup.

The Coyotes will look to return to winning formation this Tuesday in Columbus against a tough Blue Jackets team (4-3-0). Columbus has won 6 straight versus the Coyotes dating back to 2015.