Klas Dahlbeck hoping to stick on Coyotes blue line

SAN JOSE, Calif. – When gauging what the Coyotes blue line could look like next season, very few givens exist.

Clearly, Oliver Ekman-Larsson is a cornerstone of the unit and a bonafide top-pairing defenseman. And the progression of Michael Stone, who played in his 200th career game Friday against the Sharks, suggests he has a role beyond this season.

The rest, including Klas Dahlbeck, are banking worthwhile experience this season but whether or not that will result in a permanent gig is still up in the air.

"He's had some games where I thought he's been excellent, and he's had some that he's struggled a little bit in," coach Dave Tippett said. "But that's what you get from a young player, especially in that position. Very positive so far, very positive feedback on Klas."

Dahlbeck's skating has stood out as a strength, but he's also looked relatively steady in his defensive play amid rigorous minutes. His average ice time (19:46 before Friday's action) trails only Ekman-Larsson and Stone.

What makes his transition elicit even more praise is he joined the Coyotes from the Blackhawks with only four games on his NHL resume.

"All those experiences that I've gotten from all these games I've got to play, the small details and habits, hopefully they're going to carry over into next year and help me grab a spot on the team next year," Dahlbeck said.

Redemption time

Backup Louis Domingue started Friday's game with No. 1 Mike Smith scheduled to play Saturday in Arizona when these two teams complete a rare home-at-home set.

The appearance was Domingue's first since he suffered his first career regulation loss March 19 against the Avalanche, a 5-2 defeat with Domingue on the hook for four of those goals.

"It was certainly hard for me to not be able to bounce back in a game, but I've tried to do my best in practice in order to get prepared for a game – try to approach it like a game – and I think that's what I did," he said.

McGinn's reunion

Winger Tye McGinn faced off against the Sharks for the first time since he was claimed off waivers by the Coyotes from San Jose March 2.

In 33 games with the Sharks, McGinn tallied a goal and four assists. Friday's game was McGinn's 14th with the Coyotes and with four to go after that, he's well-aware 18 games is an abbreviated audition. But the 24-year-old is hopeful that's still enough time to showcase his worth.

"You gotta look at it like 18 games is a lot of games, a lot of games that a lot of people don't get," said McGinn, who scored his first goal with the Coyotes last Saturday against the Penguins. "I look at it like that and do the best I can."

Outside looking in

The Sharks entered play Friday five points shy of the final wild card spot in the Western Conference.

Should San Jose fail to rally, this would be the team's first postseason miss since it didn't advance in 2003. The difficulty it's encountered this season to squeak into the top eight is surely a sign of the parity in the West, and the Coyotes don't anticipate that to diminish in the future.

"Everybody's striving to get better," Tippett said. "You look at the situation we're in, we're striving to get better. This is a really important summer for us just to get back to competitiveness. You're going to see the teams that miss, and you've got to get above that level. We want to be in that parity."

Saturday's game

Sharks at Coyotes

When: 6 p.m.

Where: Gila River Arena.

TV/radio: Fox Sports Arizona-Plus/KTAR-AM (620).

Sharks update: The Sharks are 6-3-1 in the second half of a back-to-back this season. On Friday, they welcomed fourth-liner Mike Brown back to the lineup. Brown missed the previous 47 gameswith a broken right leg. Call-up defenseman Karl Stollery also made his Sharks debut. Goalie Antti Niemi played Friday after sitting out the last three games with a virus. The team's other netminder, Alex Stalock, is also battling a bug.