Coyotes Top Senators 5-3 in Ottawa on Friday

STATS

OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- The 2024 calendar has moved on from the month of February, and so have the Arizona Coyotes.

Dylan Guenther scored the game-winning goal in the third period, Matias Maccelli, Michael Carcone, J.J. Moser, and Nick Schmaltz also scored, and Karel Vejmelka made 34 saves as the Coyotes beat the Ottawa Senators 5-3 at Canadian Tire Centre on Friday.

Vladimir Tarasenko, Drake Batherson, and Shane Pinto scored for the Senators, who dropped their third straight game. Anton Forsberg made 25 saves in the loss.

Maccelli finished with three points on the night, while Schmaltz, Carcone, and Guenther each recorded two. Arizona snapped a 14-game winless streak with the victory, despite playing in several very close games throughout that stretch.

"We felt we deserved better in a lot of those games," head coach André Tourigny said. "After the All-Star break we had a slow start but we didn't feel we were as bad as we had been. We know we're a better team. We're a good team.

"If we play well we can beat anyone in that league."

The Coyotes used a three-goal first period to jump out to a big lead behing goals from Carcone, Moser, and Schmaltz, but the Senators clawed back in it to send it into the third period tied at three.

Guenther's power-play goal midway through the final frame put the Desert Dogs back on top, and once Vejmelka made a left-pad save on a Parker Kelly breakaway attempt to preserve the lead, the Coyotes were able to put the game away.

"Sometimes they help me, and sometimes they need my help," Vejmelka said. "It was obvbiously a big save, but I just focused on what I had to do, so I was patient and just waited for him to shoot. It's a team win, and we'll really enjoy this moment."

The 20-year-old Guenther said he was just happy to help his team get off on the right foot in March.

"We've been playing really well the past couple of weeks, and tonight was just the beneficiary of that," he said. "We're going to take this confidence and roll it into the next game."

Guenther, who won two titles in the WHL, scored the golden goal for Team Canada in the World Junior Championship, and was the Tucson Roadrunners' leading scorer with 10 goals and 18 assists in 29 games before getting called up from the AHL earlier this season, continues to shine on the grandest stage.

"I know he will be a key player at key moments," Tourigny said. "He has that look and that swagger. He wants to be on the ice at those moments, and he has the character we're looking for."

The Coyotes got off to a fast start on Friday despite playing in their third game in four nights, and the second of back-to-back tilts.

Carcone opened the scoring 7:31 into the first period, firing home a rebound from Liam O’Brien’s shot in close to give the Coyotes an early lead. The goal marked his 16th of the season, which ranks fourth on the team.

Moser made it 2-0 at 12:39 of the opening frame, one-timing a shot from just above the left circle past Forsberg before Schmaltz gave the Coyotes a three-goal lead with a 5-on-3 goal at 15:37 of the first period.

Tarasenko brought Ottawa to within two goals at 18:09 of the first, one-timing a pass from Jakob Chychrun past Vejmelka. Batherson brought the Senators to within a goal at 13:48 of the second period, firing a rebound home to notch his 21st goal of the season.

Pinto tied it with a power-play goal just over two minutes later, snapping a shot from the right circle past Vejmelka.

Guenther restored Arizona's lead early in the third with his power-play heroics., wristing a shot top shelf at 4:18 of the third period, and Maccelli potted the empty-netter at 18:45 to ice the game.

"We loosened up when they tied the game," Tourigny said. "That shows how much the guys care. We've talked about process for the last, whatever, our guys care. We have a hell of a good group in that room, I've said it many, many times. I was proud of the way they fought back, and finally we got the two points."

Now in a new month with a clean slate, the Coyotes are set to focus on their next game.

"It's not like we win this and you're planning a parade here," Guenther said. "We have a lot of work to do, and we're going to take momentum from this."

The Coyotes are back in action on Sunday, wrapping up their five-game road trip in Washington D.C. on Sunday. Puck drop is scheduled for 11 am MST, and the game will be broadcast on Arizona 61 (TV) and ESPN 620 (Radio).