Once again, the Arizona Coyotes will have to find another day to end their long losing streak. Despite a second-period comeback, the team failed to stay in the game during the third period. The losing streak is now at 11 as the Coyotes head into a Canadian road trip. Here are some takeaways from Wednesday night’s 6-3 loss.
Auston Matthews Hits 50
The biggest story without a doubt was Auston Matthews hitting the 50-goal plateau in the first period of the game. On the power play, the Scottsdale native sniped one home to send the building into bedlam. It’s quite impressive that the forward hit 50 goals in February with two months left in the season.
Matthews’ goal marks the second time in three seasons that he has scored 50 goals. The forward also scored his 51st in the second period off of a Mitch Marner shot putting him nine away from tying his season record in goals. He scored 60 in 2021-22.
His team has had trouble containing the Coyotes in recent history. However last night, Matthews’ two goals helped power his team to an impressive 6-3 win. With the Matthews family watching, the Maple Leafs grabbed two valuable points in the race for a playoff spot in the Atlantic Divison. They are currently third in the division.
Barrett Hayton Quietly Ends Goal Drought
There’s always a bright spot in horrible games. Today’s bright spot has to be Barrett Hayton. He has struggled to put up points ever since returning from injury. Before Wednesday’s game, the forward had only two goals and five points in the season.
Hayton was able to tip an Alex Kerfoot shot right past Ilya Samsonov for the goal that would bring the Coyotes within one of a tie. That goal was his first since Nov. 16 which would end up being his last game before his injury.
For Hayton and the team, it’s not about scoring goals and ending personal droughts right now. It’s about ending the losing drought that has now hit 11. On Wednesday evening, they failed.
“I think we fought hard in the second with the comeback,” Hayton said. “I think it all comes down to that start and those penalties. We’ve been harping on it for a while now. It kills you. It’s unacceptable.”
Penalties ultimately killed the Coyotes. Two of the first three goals came on the power play for the Maple Leafs. It is one of the trends that continue to haunt the team and rob them of winning.
Mullett Magic No More
Whatever magical powers Mullett Arena had in store for the Coyotes in the first one-and-a-half seasons are gone. The Coyotes have dropped every single home game in the month of February.
Funny enough, the overall home record for the Coyotes is still above .500. They are 15-14-0. However, dropping every home game in February is bad for everyone. It’s bad for fans who are paying to see the team constantly lose, and it’s bad for the players knowing that even at home, they’re still losing.
Head coach Andre Tourigny thought the team showed a lot of character crawling back from a 3-0 and 4-2 deficit. He also thought that the start wasn’t as bad as many would point it out to be.
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“The thing is I don’t think we had a bad start,” Tourigny said. “At some point, they will have a shot when we need a save. After that, it’s on us because we took all sorts of penalties which is why we need to stay out of the box. We give them a chance and they score a second and a third. I don’t think we were off at the beginning of the game. Our forecheck was good and we had a few shots. Then they scored their first one first, unfortunately. Then we took a penalty and then they scored. Discipline is the story of the first period. Then we crawled back. We showed a lot of character during the comeback in the game. That was a lot of positives and then the killer goal to start the third.”
Both Tourigny and Hayton acknowledged the upcoming distractions and challenges the team will face at the trade deadline and the upcoming road trip to Canada. The road trip will bring the Coyotes to face the Maple Leafs once again along with the Winnipeg Jets, Montreal Canadiens, and Ottawa Senators. A Canadian road trip means more media, more pressure, and more urge to win especially with the lengthy losing streak the Coyotes are on. If they drop every game on the road trip, they’ll be winless in the whole month of February.
The Coyotes will first visit Winnipeg to play the Jets on Sunday, Feb. 25. The Jets are currently 34-15-5 and are third in the Central Division.
