Constructing a winning team in the NHL requires strong management and scouting department. There are ways to assemble a strong, competitive organization, including through the draft, free agency, and trades. However, some teams have been able to build from within and create a winning franchise. The Arizona Coyotes are trying to win from within.
Coyotes Building From Ground Up
The Coyotes acquired defensemen Matt Dumba and Sean Durzi and goaltender Connor Ingram to further that winning attitude. However, the home-grown talent will be a key part of this team into the future. Arizona is young but skilled enough to turn into a contender and centers around star forward Clayton Keller, who is 25 years old.
Related: Coyotes Team on The Rise in 2023-24
The Toronto Maple Leafs have Auston Matthews, the Edmonton Oilers have Connor McDavid, and the Chicago Blackhawks have Connor Bedard. These are all big markets that have elite players to build around and provide forward depth and support to. The Coyotes do not have that player yet, but they have a solid prospect pool from top to bottom that could develop into a Keller-type player who can transform this organization and be a franchise player.
While young star Logan Cooley may be in that discussion, the Coyotes are winning games with the roster they have. Everyone on the roster is playing within the system and contributing in one way or another. No line is costing the team games, no defensemen are playing soft, and neither goaltender is allowing several goals in a given night.
They are winning because they now have a core they believe in. The core of a team should include one forward, one defenseman, and one goaltender who are capable of leading this team to success for several years. That core three include forward Keller (25 years old), defenseman Durzi (25), and goaltender Ingram (26).
With that said, the Arizona Coyotes have several players who have enough time to help this team develop and mold this group into winners. In the mix to be leaders on this team include Cooley (19 years old), Barrett Hayton (23), Vladislav Kolyachonok (22), and Matias Maccelli (23), while Lawson Crouse (26) brings a player with experience who can still grow the game from inside the locker room. Not one of them will lead the league in goals, points, or wins, but they will provide a winning attitude in hopes of grabbing a playoff spot.
Coyotes Keep Winning With This Style of Play
Keller is the face of the franchise. He has taken this Arizona roster under his wing and turned it into a team that competes on a nightly basis while leading by example. The Coyotes win games by outworking, not outscoring, the opposition and playing a solidified game in all three zones. Arizona outworks the opposition by using an aggressive forecheck, getting players back on defense, and using an excellent puck possession game. There are not many teams that can play this way every game and come out with the wins this team has.
Work ethic is another way they have turned it around. They have recently faced the last five Stanley Cup champions five games in a row and won them all. They won because they were patient and used a forecheck the opposition could not get around without turning the puck over. When they did a chance, Ingram was there to shut the door. The Coyotes are a complete team that does not back down, regardless of who the competition is. They are more competitive than previous seasons and are not a team that others can come in and roll over. This team is different this season.
