Coyotes Lose to Avalanche, But Gain Experience

It's never easy to end a season short of the ultimate goal.
"Yeah, it stinks," Derek Stepan said. "Anytime you lose, it's never fun. Just the way it went down. It's going to be sour for a while, and I hope maybe that's some fuel going into next season."
The Coyotes closed Wednesday afternoon with a 7-1 loss to the Avalanche in Game 5. Colorado won the series, 4-1, eliminating Arizona from the playoffs.

Head coach Rick Tocchet hinted that the Coyotes were relatively battered near the end, noting that a few guys had been playing through injuries.
"We had some guys on fumes," Tocchet said. "Some guys were playing hurt. But that's not an excuse. That's a heck of a team over there. That (MacKinnon) line is incredible."
Arizona was without its top two regular season offensive producers in Game 5. Conor Garland, the Coyotes' leading goal scorer, did not play after leaving Game 4 early. Nick Schmaltz, the team's leader in points, did not play. He missed every postseason game.

The Avalanche scored three times in the first period to take a 3-0 lead. They followed with three more goals in the second period to build a 6-0 advantage heading into the third.
Clayton Keller got the Coyotes on the board in the third, redirecting a Jason Demers shot past Philipp Grubauer. It was Keller's team-leading fourth goal of the playoffs.

Keller finished the postseason with a team-high seven points.
Colorado added one more goal late.
Darcy Kuemper was pulled after two periods. He made 24 saves on 30 shots. He totaled 305 saves in nine playoff games.
"Well, I mean, he's been incredible," Tocchet said of Kuemper. "He's been like that for two years. It felt terrible to pull him. I didn't want to pull him. But I'm not going to let him sit out there. He deserves better than that."

Antti Raanta made five saves on six shots in the final period.
Despite the disappointment, the Coyotes young core gained valuable postseason experience. Eight players made their playoff debuts.
Tocchet called it "a huge experience."
"It also shows them how far we've got to go," he said. "Hopefully they're going to train harder. Hopefully they're going to develop quicker because of this experience."
Stepan, who has played in more than100 playoff games, agreed.
"I think anytime you get playoff experience, it's going to help you down the road," he said. "Losing our last two games the way we did, I hope it sticks in their brain just how every little play matters, how every little detail matters at this time of the year."

Lead Photo Credit: Dave Sandford - NHLI via Getty Images // Second Photo Credit: Dave Sandford - NHLI via Getty Images // Third Photo Credit: Andy Devlin - NHLI via Getty Images // Footer Photo Credit: Dave Sandford - NHLI via Getty Images