Five minutes is all it took for the Vegas Golden Knights to capitalize on the Arizona Coyotes who hadn’t played a game since before the All-Star Break. Despite the Coyotes playing some good hockey for the other 55 minutes, they played some of their worst hockey in the first five which is all the defending Stanley Cup champions needed to take their second straight win since the break. The Coyotes in the midst of trying to stay within playoff contention, now see themselves at .500. Here are some takeaways from Thursday’s game.
A First-Period Hangover Worth Forgetting
The All-Star Break gave the Coyotes some rest and the team got back some players from injuries like Barrett Hayton and Matt Dumba. However, the time off didn’t help them on the ice. They let in two goals in the first two minutes of the game and didn’t look particularly good in the first period.
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By the time the first period was done, the Golden Knights had scored three goals. Clayton Keller pulled the Coyotes within one in the third period, but the first two minutes of the first doomed the team as they couldn’t score another to tie the game.
“We played a good game,” head coach Andre Tourigny said. “It was the first five minutes. They played two days ago as you can see there. They had the edge on that and when we get our legs under ourselves, we are a good team.”
There’s no doubt that the Coyotes had the ability to tie this game. The team settled in after the five-minute opening onslaught but you can’t always expect to win when you’re chasing a tie, especially against the defending Stanley Cup champions.
“We just gotta be more dialed in,” Hayton said. “Coming off that start, a team like Vegas the defending Cup champs, especially with them having the game on Tuesday, they’re extra sharp there. That game on Tuesday was huge for them. We just got to be prepared. Just focus on the details, those kind of things. We slacked off a bit or we’re just a little loose. I think we did a pretty good job responding and getting momentum back after that and digging in but we can’t afford to start like that against a team like that.”
The Golden Knights are on a two-game winning streak now after the All-Star Break. The game that Hayton referred to was the Golden Knights ending the Edmonton Oilers’ lengthy winning streak. It was obvious that the Coyotes were still recovering from the All-Star Break for a small portion of the game, but all a team like the Golden Knights need is five minutes to score multiple goals.
Vejmelka Hot, Ingram Not
It just wasn’t Connor Ingram’s night in net. The goaltender who has been responsible for stealing the Coyotes’ wins in the past allowed three goals on six shots before being pulled in favor of Karel Vejmelka.
It’s similar to what happened to Vejmelka in the first half of the season. Ingram eventually stole the starting role after some rough games and ran with it. Now it might’ve just flipped. Vejmelka was excellent after relieving Ingram. He made some big saves to make 26 saves and kept the Golden Knights at three goals.
“He (Vejmelka) was unbelievable,” Hayton said. “Obviously every guy in this room is frustrated. Vejemelka came in, made a couple of huge saves in the first half of the game which really kept us in it and gave us an opportunity to fight and try to get that comeback. So he was great for us.”
With Ingram starting the game against the Golden Knights, Vejmelka will most likely start in a vital game versus the Nashville Predators on Saturday. If the Coyotes can get the same goaltender they got last night when he came in, odds are they won’t find themselves looking at a massive deficit the way they did Thursday night.
Coyotes’ New Fourth Line
What do Hayton, Dylan Guenther, and Logan Cooley all have in common? They’re all 23 or younger and they all now play on the same line. Without a doubt, the fourth line put together by Tourigny was the most impressive in the game. Every time the trio was out there, they were creating great opportunities to score. In the first period, the line managed to keep the puck in the Golden Knights’ zone for their whole shift.
Hayton’s return raised some questions of where he was going to fit in the lineup especially with Jack McBain taking his usual role centering Keller and Nick Schmaltz. Tourigny decided to pair him with Cooley and Guenther who had been playing together on a line before the All-Star Break and pretty well at that. The line showed extreme promise in just its first shift on the ice and arguably deserved a goal or two.
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“I think they had an unbelievable first period, an okay second, and they played down a little bit in the third but I’m sure they will work,” Tourigny said.
Hayton is the oldest forward on that line, something that isn’t the usual norm with the 2017 first-round pick. He sees the talent the two players have and the special chemistry that’s growing between them. He was excited to jump between the two wingers on Thursday.
“It was great,” Hayton said. “They’re unbelievable young talents. I think a couple of those games heading down the stretch, you could see their games coming together. They’re building some chemistry. It’s great to be able to jump in there with those guys.”
It’ll be interesting to see if Tourigny keeps the line together as the Coyotes head onto another road trip, but with how the three forwards played last night, all signs point to yes.
The Coyotes dropped to .500 with the loss. They are sixth in the Central Divison and have 49 points. With hopes of staying in playoff contention, they’ll head on an important road trip where they’ll face their division rivals the Predators who are tied with the St. Louis Blues for the second wild card spot in the West. The two will face off on Saturday, Feb. 10 at 6 PM CST.
