Yotes Notes: Killer Penalty Kill & Crouse’s Stellar Month

November has been a month to remember for Lawson Crouse.

The 26-year-old forward has scored all 10 of his team-leading goals this month, and is one shy of tying Andrew McBain and Dale Hawechuk’s franchise-leading mark of 11 in November. He went scoreless in Tuesday’s 3-1 win over the Lightning, but still has three goals in his last five games, and the line of Maccelli-Bjugstad-Crouse has excelled for much of the season.

Arizona’s penalty kill has been locked in as well, rising from 25th in the league on Nov. 8 to its current position of 13th (81.33 percent). The Coyotes have killed off 18 straight power plays over a span of six games, and that number increases to 20 straight kills counting the game against the Dallas Stars on Nov. 14, in which they allowed a power-play goal.

The last time Arizona went six consecutive games without allowing a power-play goal was in 2019-20, when it killed 18 straight penalties over seven games.

On to the show!

The Week in Review

Wednesday, Nov. 22 | vs. St. Louis | 6-5 Loss
Stats | The Wrap

The Coyotes started a stretch of six straight games against previous Stanley Cup winners, and though Arizona led two separate times against the St. Louis, it ultimately fell 6-5 last Wednesday.

Nick Bjugstad, Jason Zucker, Lawson Crouse, Michael Carcone, and Nick Schmaltz scored in the game, but Kevin Hayes’ tie-breaking goal 4:13 into the third period ultimately went on to be the game-winner. The Coyotes had two different one-goal leads in the game, but the Blues used two shorthanded goals to re-gain momentum and come out on top with the win.
 
Saturday, Nov. 25 | at Vegas | 2-0 Win
Stats | The Wrap

Arizona made a quick stop in Vegas to face the defending Stanley Cup Golden Knights on Saturday, and Connor Ingram shined in a 34-save shutout as the Coyotes won 2-0 at T-Mobile Arena. The game was scoreless through two periods, but third-period goals from Clayton Keller and Lawson Crouse made the difference, as the Desert Dogs improved their road record to 5-5-2 on the season. 

They won just seven games away from home in all of 2022-23.

Ingram earned his first shutout of the year – and second of his career – in the win, and made several key saves down the stretch to keep the Coyotes out front. The Pacific-leading Golden Knights have now lost three straight games but are still 14-5-4 on the season.

Tuesday, Nov. 28 | vs. Tampa Bay Lightning | 3-1 Win
Stats | The Wrap

Arizona opened its five-game homestand in style, jumping out to a 2-0 lead en route to a 3-1 win over the Lightning. Connor Ingram earned the win in his second straight start, and he has stopped 64 of 65 shots over his last two games.

Michael Carcone scored twice to increase his total to nine goals this season, second on the team behind Crouse. Travis Boyd also potted his first of the season, as the Coyotes put three past goalie Jonas Johansson to improve to 10-9-2 on the year.

Down on the Farm

Tucson Roadrunners (10-6-1-1, 4th Place, Pacific Division)
-    3-1-1-0 Last Week
-    Nov. 21: at Calgary Wranglers, 3-2 Win
-    Nov. 22: at Calgary Wranglers, 4-0 Loss
-    Nov. 25: at Henderson Silver Knights, 3-2 Win
-    Nov. 26: at Henderson Silver Knights, 3-2 Loss (overtime)
-    Nov. 28: at Ontario Reign, 3-2 Win

The Roadrunners used a solid week of play to jump three spots in the Pacific Division standings, finishing a five-game road trip 3-1-1-0, and finally return home to Tucson Convention Center to host the San Jose Barracuda this weekend. The trip wrapped up a solid November for Tucson, led by Dylan Guenther’s 11 points in 12 games. The team was a collective 7-3-1-1 in the month.

Team Leaders
•    Points: Guenther (16)
•    Goals: Doan (7)
•    Assists: Guenther (10)
•    GAA: Villalta (2.43)
•    SV%: Villalta (.924)

But has come on strong since Nov. 8, recording eight points in as many games in Russia’s top hockey league. The 18-year-old draft pick has three multi-point games over that span, and has helped Lokomotiv Yaroslav win six of its last seven games to improve to second place in the Tarasov Division, five points behind Dynamo Moscow with two games in hand.

The 6-foot-5 forward had a slow start to his KHL season, as it took him 10 games to record his first goal, but a trip to the MHL’s Loko Yaroslavl ultimately jump-started his season and he recorded his first multi-goal game in the KHL on Oct. 13 in a 6-0 win over Barys Astana.

The Sweet Spot

Nov. 28: Michael Carcone opens the scoring with a seeing-eye shot in the Coyotes’ 3-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday.

Bear's Necessities

"We were urgent and focused all night long. It’s a Stanley Cup championship team on the other side. The way we played defensively, the way we managed the puck, the way we managed our game, that’s what we were begging for a while. That’s what we’re capable of." –  André Tourigny on the Coyotes’ win over the Vegas Golden Knights.

What to Watch For

Thursday, Nov. 30 vs. Colorado Avalanche, 7 pm MST
Arizona and Colorado face off in the first of four meetings between the Central Division rivals, with future meetings on Dec. 23 and Feb. 18 in Colorado, and Dec. 27 at Mullett Arena. Thursday’s game will be a special night for the team, as it hosts its annual Hockey Fights Cancer night.

The first-place Avalanche are on a roll, having won four straight and seven of their last eight games. Arizona was 1-1-2 against Colorado last season, with the lone win coming on Dec. 27, 2022 at Mullett Arena.

The Avs boast the league’s third-best offense, and have four players with at least 20 points: Cale Makar (32), Nathan MacKinnon (28), Mikko Rantanen (27), and Valeri Nichuskin (20). Makar’s 26 assists lead the league, while Rantanen’s 12 goals lead the team.

Between the pipes, Alexandar Georgiev has done the lion’s share of work this season, posting a 13-5-0 record with a 2.84 goals-against average and .898 save percentage. Former Coyotes prospect Ivan Prosvetov has appeared in five games after he was claimed off waivers in October, posting a 2-1-0 record with a 2.35 GAA and .919 SV%.

Georgiev has started in eight of Colorado’s last nine games.

The Avalanche have the fourth best penalty kill (87.95), and third-best offense in the league, averaging 3.76 goals per game. They’re a top-10 team when it comes to goals against, as well, allowing an average of 2.81 goals per game.

TV: Scripps Sports (Antenna: 61.1 Phoenix, 9.2 Tucson | Cable: DirecTV 61, Dish 61, Cox 95 Phoenix, Cox 85/Comcast 1179 Tucson) | Radio: ESPN 620

Saturday, Dec. 2 vs. St. Louis Blues, 7 pm MST
Arizona and St. Louis close out their season series on Saturday, and though the Coyotes won the first meeting in the Gateway City 6-2, the Blues have won the last two games, 2-1 and 6-5. St. Louis is in fourth place in the Central Division as of now with 23 points, one ahead of both Nashville and Arizona.

The Blues fell 3-1 at Minnesota on Tuesday, and have dropped two of their last three games overall. They host the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday before arriving in the desert for Saturday’s tilt.

Forward Robert Thomas continues to lead the team with 22 points, and his eight goals are tied for the team lead along side Pavel Buchnevich. Despite their six goals against Arizona last season, St. Louis hasn’t scored at-will this season, ranking 25th in the league with 2.86 goals per game, compared to 3.05 goals allowed per game.

The Blues’ power play has improved drastically since the teams first met this season, rising from three percent to 9.23 percent thanks in part to recording a goal with the man advantage in three of their last five games.

Jordan Binnington and Joel Hofer continue to split time between the pipes, with the former posting a 6-6-1 record with a 2.91 GAA and .910 save percentage, while the latter is 5-3-0 with a 3.03 GAA and .905 SV%. Hofer has earned the decision in each of the games between the two this season, going 2-1-0 with a 2.77 GAA and .905 SV% over the three games.

TV: Scripps Sports (Antenna: 61.1 Phoenix, 9.2 Tucson | Cable: DirecTV 61, Dish 61, Cox 95 Phoenix, Cox 85/Comcast 1179 Tucson) | Radio: ESPN 620