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Posts Tagged Shane Doan

Kings Look to Prove Their Worth

Oct 29

Posted by EB in News | No Comments

Jonathan Quick, net-minder for the Los Angeles Kings has topped the charts for fantasy goalies. Going 6-0-1 in his first 7 starts, his play could be an early indicator of the Kings success this year.

Tonight, the Kings will face the Phoenix Coyotes in a division showdown. The Coyotes are off to a rough start, 4-3-2 in 9 games so far, look to build upon their recent win over the New Jersey Devils. With Ray Whitney, Keith Yandle and Captain Shane Doan leading the team, it is only a matter of time before the Coyotes fight for first place within the division. Factor in a new netminder Mike Smith, after Ilya Bryzgalov went to the Philadelphia flyers (3-4-1 and a 3.44 goals against average this season), and the team is definitely hungry.

The Kings come into this season with a lot to prove after an early exit last year in the playoffs. This was largely in part to the injury to Captain Anze Kopitar. This season, Kopitar looks to have recovered from his broken ankle, as he is tearing it up with 4 goals, 8 assists and a plus 5 overall rating. Furthermore, new addition Mike Richards has 1 goal and 8 helpers so far. Richards had 23 goals last season and 31 the season before that, fans are just waiting for the dam to break.

You cannot speak about the Kings without mentioning defensman Drew Doughty. Doughty had a rough start to the season, holding out for more money then now having an upper-body injury. Tonight he is expected to suit back up against the Coyotes, and hopefully tries to prove he is indeed worth his contract.

The season is young, still too early to see who really has what it takes this year to go all the way. Still, the Kings are looking really good early on. Once all the puzzle pieces start coming together, it will be interesting to see if any team in the Pacific division stands a chance.

 

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2011-12 NHL Season Preview: Phoenix Coyotes

Sep 16

Posted by EB in Season Previews | No Comments

Key Offseason Additions: Daymond Langkow, Raffi Torres, Mike Smith

Key Offseason Losses: Eric Belanger, Lee Stempniak, Vernon Fiddler, Ed Jovanovski, Ilya Bryzgalov

Last Season Ranking: 6th in West

What do you mean Ilya Bryzgalov is gone? We're screwed!

Offense: The Phoenix Coyotes were in the middle of the pack last year as a team for offensive statistics. Averaging 2.76 goals per game, it is going to be interesting to see if the team can better last years numbers with the amount of changes to the lineup.

The Coyotes are still lead by the great work ethic of Shane Doan. Doan is a player you would love on your team but hate to play against. Averaging 64 points over his last five seasons, it seems likely he will meet that number again this year.

Doan will be supported by an assortment of players, most notably Martin Hanzel, Ray Whitney, Radim Vrbata, Taylor Pyatt and new addition Daymond Langkow. Hanzel is coming into his 5th season and has been looking to break into the 40 point threshold. Whitney brings the veteran presence as well as great playmaking capabilities. Vrbata has jumped to a few teams but it seems Phoenix is the place for him. Vrbata has averaged 49 points in the three seasons with the Coyotes. Pyatt brings good depth to the team, not exceling, but manages to stay positive in +/- over his years.

The final piece of the puzzle comes from Daymond Langkow who previously played for the Calgary Flames. He has been suffering from a neck injury, but if healthy, can add another 40+ points to the team. The positive for Coyote fans is that his production is a good combination of assists and goals.

Defense: When you look at Phoenix’s defensive pairings you cannot help but notice the team has depth. Sure they lost gritty Ed Jovanovski, but that can be easily overlooked by giving more ice time to sophomore Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Ekman-Larsson only played 48 games last season, needing time to develop with the San Antonio Rampage. Expected to play a full season this year without any unforeseen hardships, Ekman-Larsson could develop into a very good defenseman.

Most of the weight of the defense will be carried by Keith Yandle. Yandle had a breakout season posting 11 goals and 48 assists for 59 points. Include a plus 12 rating and 103 blocked shots, Yandle does what it takes for the team to win.

Goaltending: The biggest change for the team comes in the net. Ilya Bryzgalov has gone to the Philadelphia Flyers to be replaced by Mike Smith from the Tampa Bay Lightning. Smith did not play much last season for the Lightning as Dwayne Roloson stole the show. It is expected the time out of the number one spotlight, as well as replacing Bryzgalov’s shoes, will make Smith hungry to be the best goalie and the right choice for the Coyotes.

If, however, Smith falters, backup Jason LaBarbera will be there to assist. While playing for the Los Angeles Kings, LaBarbera was expected to be a great goalie. The hype far outweighed the production, and he will forever be just a backup.

HWB Playoff Prediction: Not Playoff bound. With the loss of Ilya Bryzgalov and no real added stars, the Phoenix Coyotes will not make the playoffs. Poor performance will increase the low attendance, expect rumors to be spreading all year about a potential city change.

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Phoenix Coyotes Tops the Pacific Division

Nov 24

Posted by EB in News, Soap Box | 1 Comment

As if you thought I would not touch on this topic?

The Phoenix Coyotes are now the new leader in the Pacific Division. With a record of 11-5-5 for 27 points, the team seems to have settled in. Things did not come easy though for the Coyotes as in the month of October they were a sad 3-4-3, 9 points out of a possible 20. Some were worried, even myself, that maybe the team was a fluke last year.

This is not the case as the team is currently on a tear with a 7-1-2 record in their last 10 games played. Goalie Ilya Bryzgalov is starting to regain form; 6 wins in a row. New addition Ray Whitney leads the team with 15 points, Wojtek Wolski is getting his scoring hands back and forwards Radim Vrbata and Lee Stempniak each have 13 points a piece and a +6/+5 rating.

The team is playing well and still has some room to grow. Youndg defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson is still finding his way, forward Scottie Upshall has not been up to his normal scoring ways, and even captain Shane Doan has yet to lead the team as a captain should.

The Phoenix Coyotes are back on track and look to keep up their impressive streak of wins. The Pacific division is tough with the likes of the Los Angeles Kings and the slumping San Jose Sharks, but expect the Coyotes to contest for the top spot throughout the whole year. Come playoffs, the only thing these desert dogs have to worry about is not matching up against the Detroit Red Wings.

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Phoenix Coyotes Slow Start

Nov 17

Posted by EB in Guest Article | No Comments

HWB is reaching out to local fans bringing their thoguhts and opinions about their home team to HWB readers. Here is one of them from guest writer Jenna @ Hipchecks.com.

The Coyotes season has not been off to as great of a start as we thought it would be. I am thinking we need to change the marketing campaign from Don’t Blink to Don’t Panic. As several people have pointed out, this is not the worse start. It’s not great and there is still a lot of hockey to play yet.

The biggest problem seems to be the penalties. I don’t know what they have in the penalty box this season but it must be pretty good since the guys love to take a 2 minute rest. Beyond that, we can’t string together a consistent 60 minutes and we seem to have lost our physical edge. The Coyotes are a much better team when they play aggressively. They seem to have forgotten how to finish a check.

The Coyotes are finding ways to get a point here and there but I would much rather take the win in regulation. The team seems to be starting to gel a bit now. Tippett put the Czech line back together for the win against Chicago and Wolski has remembered he has skills. I am hoping we can string together some wins. LaBarbera put up a good game Wednesday and gave Bryz a much needed rest. This could be a turnaround point.

Enough about the on ice problems, what about the attendance? Personally, I think it sucks right now. I can give you all the excuses in the world for. Trust me, I know them all and have recited them quite a bit. I can also tell you I have yet to buy a single game ticket. I used to be a season ticket holder. Why haven’t I bought a ticket? I can’t afford it. I have not received a raise in three, going on four, years. The economy is brutal right now.

A couple of the players have made comments about the attendance. Paul Bissonnette stated on twitter that he thought it was dress like a seat night while Ray Whitney gave extensive quotes to some news story. The difference is Bissonnette was making a joke and has made it apparent how much he appreciates the loyal fans. Whitney just threw us all under a bus. Maybe if Whitney could score a few more fans would show up. Just a thought.

The fact that we don’t have an owner doesn’t help attendance either. It’s very unstable right now. I know I have talked to a lot of people that are waiting for the whole mess to sort out. There is no easy answer. With an owner, we can have a real marketing department with a real budget. There is almost no advertising now except at the market that already watches the game. We have guys that should be out in public. Shane Doan is like the Steve Nash and Kurt Warner of hockey. He is already in the community a lot but he is no where near the Steve Nash or Kurt Warner level in Phoenix and he should be.

Speaking of the ownership situation… Did anyone see the interview with Hulsizer during the Chicago game? It was quite positive. He has already talked to the coaching staff about making the transition and he referred to the assistant GM as “our GM”. He is already thinking about the team as his. I also liked the way he spoke about hockey and owning a team. It’s not about the money for him. He is very passionate about this sport and wants to see it prosper in Arizona. He said a deal is imminent. I believe we will hear the big announcement by the end of 2010.

If you would like to write a guest article about your home team, please contact any member of the HWB team and we would be happy to make that possible.

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Phoenix Coyote’s Shane Doan Suspended

Oct 19

Posted by EB in News | No Comments

In an effort to crack down on blindside hits, the NHL is enforcing their newly drafted rules in a suspension to Phoenix Coyote’s captain Shane Doan. Doan will be suspended 3 games for a hit against Dan Sexton of the Anaheim Ducks.

The distinction of a suspension or not was reviewed from a few angles: 1. Sexton released the puck well before the hit and 2. Doan’s angle of impact. Some may argue that the hit was legal, and since Sexton was not injured so therefore no foul on the play. These are of course subject to interpretation, legality of the hit that being, but to only suspend players who have another goes against the principal of the rules; to be proactive and avoid player injury.

Doan will miss games against the Los Angeles Kings, Carolina Hurricanes and the Montreal Canadiens. His return will be against the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday, October 26.

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Hockey World Blog Season Previews 2010: Phoenix Coyotes

Sep 17

Posted by EB in Season Previews | No Comments

Key Offseason Losses: Matthew Lombardi, Zbynek Michalek

Key Offseason Additions: Adrian Aucoin, Eric Belanger, Martin Hanzel, Taylor Pyatt, Lee Stempniak, Ray Whitney, Wojtek Wolski

Last Season Ranking: 4th, West

Offense: The Phoenix Coyotes surprised a lot of fans last year and look to wow a few more this upcoming season. The team has 4 solid lines that all can score. Those expected to top the points for the Coyotes are Wojtek Wolski, Shane Doan and a healthy returning Scottie Upshall. Added last year Lee Stempniak looks to continue his point per game production (18) with the club after netting only 30 points in 62 games played with Toronto last season. New comers from free agency veteran Ray Whitney and playmaker Eric Belanger look to add the depth and skill to make the Coyotes one of the most deep teams in the NHL.

Rookie defensman Oliver Ekman-Larsson will be a player worth watching at the young age of 19 this season with the Coyotes.

Rookie defensman Oliver Ekman-Larsson will be a player worth watching at the young age of 19 this season with the Coyotes.

Defense: Like the offense, the team’s defense is also one of the deepest defenses. Last season the Coyotes were one of the top goals scored by defense. The team is lead by tough nose Ed Jovanovski, a strong supporting cast, and better yet, top defensive team point getter Keith Yandle is expected to line with rookie Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Oliver, at age 19,  is a player to watch for this season coming from Sweden. A skilled puck handler and playmaker offensively, as well as a very sound positioning defensive style that likes to pick some pockets.

Goaltending: As if it could get any better, it most certainly does. Netminder Ilya Brysgalov very well could be one of the top goaltenders next season. Posting a 42-20-0 record in 69 games started, was 6th best in goals against average (2.29) as well as second to only Martin Brodeur in shutouts with 8. Backup netminder Jason LaBarbera will be a solid replacement when Ilya needs some rest.

Season Outlook: Perhaps my viewpoint of the Coyotes is a little biased, this I am aware of. Despite that, in a non-biased assessment, the Coyotes could very well put up another 100 point season, lead the Pacific Division over the tough San Jose Sharks, and perhaps even challenge for Western Conference leader.

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James Wisniewski high elbow on Shane Doan

Nov 1

Posted by EB in Media, News, Soap Box | 1 Comment

James Wisniewski of the Anaheim Ducks threw a high elbow to Captain Shane Doan of the Phoenix Coyotes. The elbow left Doan staggered on the ice, and bleeding from his left cheek. At first glance it seems to be just an awkward hit, but after video replay, you can see the extending of Wisniewski’s forearm/elbow.

Coyote Keith Yandle tangled with Wisnieweski in defense of his captain after the high hit. The game stayed ugly as big boys George Parros of Anaheim fought Coyote’s Paul Bissonnette.

The situation was laid to rest early in the second as Doan and Wisniewski dropped the gloves. The two exchanged a few blows before Doan gained position, only to have Wisniewski fall to the ice. Doan continued the fight and threw a big shot while Wisniewski was on his back.

The hit was high, a lunge to the head with an extended forearm/elbow. Wisniewski should get a suspension for the hit and hopefully will be addressed today. Despite the policing within the game with fighting, hits such as this are dangerous and could severely injure a player.

When the buzzer sounded, the Coyote’s took a shootout win over the Ducks in a score of 3-2. The Coyotes are now 9-4-0 and are in 4th place within the Western Conference. On the other end, the Anaheim Ducks fall to 4-6-2, leaving them second to last in 14th place within the Western Conference.

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Phoenix Coyotes

Sep 17

Posted by EB in Season Previews | 1 Comment

No greater is the need to have a winning season other than right now for the Phoenix Coyotes. With the future of the team in question, the team must go on and is doing so.

The team has made only few acquisitions to increase depth and talent. Starting with goalie, Jason Labarbera has signed with the team. Last year Labarbera split his time between two clubs, the L.A. Kings and the Vancouver Canucks. Combining his stats, he posted 8 wins, 10 losses and 6 overtime losses in 28 games with a .901 save percentage. His expectations should be no more than providing a solid back up position to starting goalie Ilya Bryzgalov.

The Phoenix Coyote’s seem to be transitioning into a more puck moving club, as they have gotten rid of their enforcers. Last season Daniel Carcillo was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers, as this season they have decided not to sign right wing Brian McGrattan to the Calgary Flames. The Flames have also picked up Nigel Dawes off of waivers from the Coyotes.

Perhaps the only two other players to make note of that will be joining the Coyote’s roster is that of defenseman Adrian Aucoin and the return of forward Radim Vrbata.

Aucoin holds an Olympic silver medal from 1994, played in the NHL All Star game in the 2003 – 2004 season and is a solid defenseman. The veteran defenseman will be able to provide wisdom and knowledge to the relatively young defense of the Coyote’s, as well as production on the power play.

Young forward Peter Mueller will be reunited with the return of winger Radim Vrbata.

Young forward Peter Mueller will be reunited with the return of winger Radim Vrbata.

The return of Radim Vrbata should ignite some offensive sparks with young forward Peter Mueller.  Vrbata winged a line of then rookie Peter Mueller. Together they were able to provide an offensive threat, combining for 49 goals, 61 assists totaling 110 points.

The Coyote’s have the talent to be a good hockey team. Captain and excellent two way player Shane Doan, up and coming Scottie Upshall, as well as veteran assistant captain Ed Jovanovski. The team was on pace to make the playoffs last season, only to fall hard and ending in 13th place. With the club’s future in question, even the question of Wayne Gretzky being head coach, the team could be an absolute wreck with the side distractions, or have an excellent season later to be made into a sports motivational movie.

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