Yotes Notes: Keller Keeps Climbing & Tucson Keeps Winning

Clayton Keller continues to climb the Coyotes’ all-time leaderboard.

The four-time All-Star, which in itself is a Coyotes team record, celebrated his 500th career game on March 5 and reached 400 career points in Saturday’s 4-1 win over the New Jersey Devils. He is actually at 401 points after he finished the game with both a goal and an assist, and has been an ever-steady presence with the club since his first full NHL season in 2017-18.

"He works hard, he's competitive, and he's really driven," head coach André Tourigny said. "He's a good leader for our team."

Keller was quick to acknowledge family, friends, and team staff on Saturday following the win.

"It's a cool achievement and a lot of people have sacrificed," he said. "I wouldn't be here without the sacrifice of a lot of people who put a lot of time to making me healthy, mentally as well. Definitely lots to be thankful for."

The Tucson Roadrunners, meanwhile, wrapped up an eight-point week following a 6-3 win over the Texas Stars on Sunday, and continue to position themselves for a playoff run as the AHL postseason rapidly approaches. This, of course, comes as the team has to balance constant lineup shuffling due to injuries within the Coyotes, with forwards John Leonard and Nathan Smith currently assigned to the parent club.

“It's a good problem to have,” Roadrunners General Manager John Ferguson said. “It means you've got good prospects and good players.”

Miloš Kelemen, Jan Jenik, Justin Kirkland, Patrik Koch, Vladislav Kolyachonok, Victor Söderström, and Matthew Villalta have all seen time with the Coyotes this season, as well.

On to the show!

The Week in Review

Tuesday, March 12 | at Minnesota Wild | 4-1 Loss
STATS | RECAP

The game was much closer than the score indicated considering Minnesota registered two empty-net goals in the third period, but the Coyotes ultimately dropped their second straight game. Nick Bjugstad tied the game at one with his 16th goal of the season in the second period, but Kirill Kaprizov’s three-point night propelled Minnesota to the win.

Minnesota won the season series between the Central Division rivals, 3-1-0.

Thursday, March 14 | at Detroit Red Wings | 4-1 Win
STATS | RECAP

The Coyotes topped the Red Wings for the second time in a week’s time, and ultimately won the season series against Detroit 2-0-0, outscoring them 8-1 in the process. Connor Ingram shined with 28 saves in the win, while goals from Logan Cooley, Michael Carcone, Bjugstad, and Clayton Keller sealed the win for Arizona.

Cooley’s goal opened the scoring at 5:10 of the first, coming shorthanded, and though Lucas Raymond tied it late in that same frame, the Coyotes scored the next three goals en route to the win.

Saturday, March 18 | vs. New Jersey Devils | 4-1 Win
STATS | RECAP

Arizona won its second straight game – by the same score, no less – after using three first period goals to jump out to a commanding lead. J.J. Moser, Dylan Guenther, and Cooley each found the back of the net in the opening frame, and though Nick DeSimone pulled the Devils to within two in the second period, Karel Vejmelka shut the door from there, and Keller’s team-leading 27th goal in the waning moments of the game iced it.

The Coyotes, who defeated the Devils in a shootout in their first game of the series, swept the season series against New Jersey for the first time since the 2013-14 season. 

Down on the Farm

Tucson Roadrunners (31-19-3-2, 3rd Place, Pacific Division)
- 4-0-0-0 Last Week
- March 12 vs. Henderson Silver Knights, 4-0 Win
- March 13, vs. Henderson Silver Knights, 6-2 Win
- March 16, vs. Texas Stars, 4-1 Win
- March 17, vs. Texas Stars, 6-3 Win

Tucson bolstered its playoff positioning in the 10-team Pacific Division with a 4-0-0-0 week, sweeping home series against both Henderson and Texas while outscoring the opposition by a combined score of 20-6. The Roadrunners will face the Reign in Ontario, Calif. on Wednesday before opening up a two-game series against the Barracuda in San Jose on Saturday and Sunday.

Tucson is in second place in the Pacific Division, but just nine points separate second from seventh, and since the AHL re-seeds teams for the second round, each upcoming game becomes critical for playoff positioning. Division leader Coachella Valley is five points ahead of the Roadrunners with 15 games remaining this season, two more than Tucson.

Team Leaders
• Points: Doan (44)
• Goals: Doan (24)
• Assists Räty (25)
• GAA: Villalta (2.66)
• SV%: Villalta (.909)

Langlois has been consistent all season long with his production on offense, averaging over a point-per game as a 6-foot-1 defenseman in the QMJHL. The 20-year-old has helped the Huskies to a 8-1-1 record over their last 10 games, and are in first place in the West Division.

He won the QMJHL championship with the Québec Remparts last season and went on to win the CHL’s Memorial Cup, as well.

Bear’s Necessities

"I'm happy because we talked about our game management before the game, saying the last two times we were on the road for a long road trip, when we came back home, the first period was not as good. We challenged our guys on that, and they answered really well." – André Tourigny following the Coyotes’ 4-1 win over the New Jersey Devils on Saturday.

What to Watch For

Wednesday, March 20, at Dallas Stars, 5 pm MST
The Coyotes and Stars meet twice in the span of four days, and Wednesday’s marks the second of three matchups between the two teams. The Stars won 4-3 in overtime in Dallas on Nov. 14, and they’ll wrap up their season series at Mullett Arena on Sunday.

As of Monday the Stars are in a three-way tie for first in the Central Division from a points perspective, as they have 91 points along with the Winnipeg Jets and Colorado Avalanche. Dallas, though, has played the most games (69) of the three, with Colorado (68) and Winnipeg (67) each maintaining games in hand.

Forward Jason Robertson leads the way with 68 points in 69 games, followed by Joe Pavelski (58), Matt Duchene (58), Roope Hintz (56), and Wyatt Johnston (53).

Dallas most recently defeated the L.A. Kings 4-1 on Saturday, and are 6-2-0 over their last eight games.

Jake Oettinger has led the way between the pipes this season, posting a 25-13-4 record with a 3.05 goals-against average and .896 save percentage this season. Scott Wedgewood, who played a combined 46 games with the Coyotes over two different seasons, is 15-6-5 with a 2.84 GAA and .902 SV%.

Oettinger was in net when Arizona and Dallas met in November.

The Stars score the second-most goals in the league, with 2.59 goals-for per game, while allowing the 16th-most (3.01). Their power-play percentage of 23.76 ranks eighth, while their penalty kill is 12th with an 80.68 percent success rate.

TV: Arizona 61 | Radio: ESPN 620

Friday, March 22, vs. Seattle Kraken, 7 pm MST
Arizona won 4-3 in a shootout at Mullett Arena on Nov. 7 behind goals from Matias Maccelli, Barrett Hayton, and Clayton Keller, anchored by a 35-save effort from Connor Ingram. The two meet once more following Friday’s game, on April 9 in Seattle.

The Kraken have lost four straight, and have games against Buffalo (Monday in Seattle) and Vegas (Thursday in Vegas) before facing off in the desert.

Jared McCann’s 53 points lead the way for Seattle, while Oliver Bjorkstrand (48), Vince Dunn (45), Jordan Eberle (37), and Eeli Tolvanen (34) round out the top five. Between the pipes, Joey Daccord is 17-14-10 with a 2.45 GAA and .919 SV% this season, while Philipp Grubauer is 10-11-2 with a 2.86 GAA and .900 SV%.

Daccord was in net when Arizona and Seattle played earlier this season.

The Kraken rank 28th in the league with 2.68 goals-for per game, but their defense has been much more stingy, allowing the eighth-fewest goals per game at 2.82. Their power play is 17th with a 21.31 conversion percentage, while the penalty kill’s 78.80 percent success rate ranks 19th.

TV: Arizona 61 | Radio: 98.7 FM Arizona Sports

Sunday, March 24, vs. Dallas Stars, 5 pm MST
Arizona and Dallas wrap up their season series with their second meeting in four days. Game details and statistics can be found in the preview for Wednesday’s matchup.

TV: Arizona 61 | Radio: 98.7 FM Arizona Sports