The Season Is Almost Over, And The Arizona Coyotes Are Probably Glad

No… unfortunately this wasn’t a bad dream, or a sick April Fools trick placed on loyal Arizona Coyotes fans. They really are finishing their WORST season in team history. Not since the ’07-’08 season when they managed only 68 points, has it been this bad. And, the following season the team cleared the front office, but did retain Wayne Gretzky as their coach one more year.

They currently reside in 29th place in the NHL standings, and more than likely will not move north of that placement before season’s end. They went into a rebuilid, retool, makeover, but kinda, sorta when it looked not too promising that much would be accomplished this season.

The absolutely worst thing that could have happened to them was in the “McEichel Cup” games recently where they got a possible 2 points in the two games they played the worst team in the league, the Buffalo Sabres.

They allowed Buffalo to get three points, and now the lowly Sabres trail the Arizona Coyotes by only four points, with a game in hand as a bonus. Now, Buffalo has some tough games to finish off the season, but so do the Arizona Coyotes. I see them coming in 29th place, which for the NHL Entry Draft this summer.. is a good place to be.

There were many factors which caused the team’s downfall this season. Young defense, poor goaltending (which has improved this month), extreme lack of offense, injuries… must I go on?

They just didn’t play well at all. The hope is that this culture of losing doesn’t carry over to next season. They have some promising young prospects, and they need to utililze their talents to propel them out of the doldrums they have found themselves in this season.

If you are a fan, like myself, it is very disheartening to see YOUR team look so bad for the entire season. Losing streak, after losing streak just takes the energy out of your loyalty and fervor for the team to play well. There are many Arizona Coyotes fans who will say “I’m not going to put myself through the agony of another season like this.”

And, there may be some other fans, as myself who feel this team will rebound nicely, with some additions needed to improve their fate.

Some question marks remain:

Will Mike Smith break out of his bad funk to perform to the standards of his huge contract?

Will the young defense be fortified by some off season signings of free agents to supplement and improve their porous defense?

Will Max Domi, and Anthony Duclair be able to single handedly lift this team’s offense to where it should be?

Will the team adopt a winning brand needed to get back into the playoffs?

Will the Arizona Coyotes fans be patient yet another year, after waiting three seasons without a playoff appearance?

Will their continued lack of winning cause them to eventually be relocated?

I think this team has some work to do as an organization to succeed as the fans want so desperately. Let’s see how it all unfolds.