Mullett Magic: Coyotes Using Temporary Home to Gain Edge Over Opponents

It didn't take long for the Arizona Coyotes to make themselves right at home at Mullett Arena.
So much, so, in fact, it's already become a downright tough place to play.
Fresh off a four-game road trip, the club returns home on Sunday for a game against Pittsburgh, and though facing the Penguins in any circumstance is anything but easy, the friendly confines of The Coyotes' new, temporary home in Tempe, Ariz. may just give them an edge.
If that seems like a stretch, just ask the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, or even the defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche -- all of whom
fell victim to a phenomenon
that's quickly gaining notoriety throughout the league:
Mullett Magic.

"Teams don't like coming into The Mullett," forward Nick Bjugstad said. "It's a different rink to play in for a lot of people. We're trying to use it to our advantage, so we're having some fun with it."

The San Jose Sharks and Ottawa Senators will also visit the desert this week, where the Coyotes will play 29 of their final 45 games. Arizona is 7-3-2 at home this season, including an impressive 6-1-1 mark over its last eight games in Tempe.
The difference at Mullett Arena, though, isn't some mythical legend.
It's evident on the stat sheet.
The Coyotes have scored just as many goals as they've given up at Mullett Arena so far this season (40), and have even outscored the opposition 15-11 in the third period.
"That's what you get when you come to The Mullett," Coyotes President and CEO Xavier A. Gutierrez said on a recent appearance on the Burns & Gambo Show. "It's the best experience in all of the NHL, and our players feed off of it."
The home success hasn't been limited to the final frame, either, as the team has only been outscored 12-10 in the first period and 15-14 in the second. For the sake of comparison, the Coyotes were outscored 52-27 and 59-33 at home in the same periods last season.
"It's not a 20,000 seat arena, but that doesn't mean that it can't have a good atmosphere, and it can't be a fun place to play, and it can't be a hard place for a visiting team to come in and play. Everybody on the team enjoys playing there," forward Travis Boyd said. "When we're at Mullett and we're going, we're buzzin, we get the crowd into it, and you feel that home-ice advantage, which maybe we didn't feel all that much last year."
Though the environment itself certainly factors in, there are slight differences in actual gameplay, too.
Coyotes head coach André Tourigny said some of the major on-ice differences include how fast the puck moves around the corners, in addition to the speed of the playing surface. Though he said those aspects aren't necessarily "unique in the league," the logistics add up to one of the best surfaces - and some of the fastest play - in the entire NHL.
Those conditions have been recognized by opposing teams, too. Winnipeg Jets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois told ESPN's Leah Hextall in October that the ice at Mullett Arena "might just be the best in the NHL."

Combine that with a raucous crowd night in and night out, and that adds up to a special advantage.
"The atmosphere is great," Tourigny said. "The fans are into it. We love it. When you have success, you feed off it, and get even more excited, and now we believe in ourselves."
Forward Nick Schmaltz, who has 11 points in just eight home games this season, agreed, but was quick to point out the collective effort Arizona has put forth to make games at Mullett Arena a success.
"It's been fun," he said. "The first couple of games with the guys, it was a little bit different, so I think it might be a little bit different for other guys coming in, too.
"It feels a little bit smaller out there which might be a little bit of an advantage for us in that sense, but we're getting great goaltending, we're playing well, we're scoring goals, and it's cool to see we're getting some wins at home."

The Coyotes still have 29 home games left on their schedule, but for now, "Mullett Magic" is in full effect.
Home, sweet home, indeed.
"It's a great atmosphere," said forward Jack McBain. "It's fun to play in, the fans are great, we like being here, so it's a lot of fun."