One more game…. – Coyotes/Panthers Preview
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Phoenix Coyotes vs Florida PanthersBank Atlantic Center- Sunrise, Florida
Puck Drops at 4:30 PM AZ Time
TV: FSN-AZ Radio: KFNX 1100 |
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Last five games:
Panthers: 3 – 2 – 0
Coyotes: 5 – 0 – 0
Last ten games:
Panthers: 4 – 5 – 1
Coyotes: 7 – 3 – 0
Record when scoring the first goal:
Panthers: 16 – 8 – 8
Coyotes: 32 – 3 – 2
| Point Leaders | |
| Panthers | Weiss(50), Horton(46), Reinprecht(37) |
| Coyotes | Wolski(51), Doan(51), Lombardi(45) |
| Goal Leaders | |
| Panthers | Weiss(23), Horton(17), Frolik(17) |
| Coyotes | Vrbata(21), Stempniak(20), Wolski(19) |
| Assists Leaders | |
| Panthers | Horton(29), McCabe(27), Weiss(27) |
| Coyotes | Doan(34),Wolski(32), Lombardi(29) |
The Coyotes travel to Sunrise Florida not only for the last game of their 4 game Southeast Conference road trip. The Coyotes also have the opportunity to win their 43rd game of the season which would be a new all-time franchise best.
Not much is known about the young Panthers team except for their goaltender Tomas Vokoun and by looking at the Panthers Stats sheet, they too have balanced scoring across multiple line. They are in 13th place in the Eastern Conference, which doesn’t really mean much because the East is going to be a dogfight for playoff spots. This includes the Panthers.
Like Bryzgalov, Vokoun has the ability to win games all by himself. So this game has the ability to be an extremely tight battle as both teams need to cement their playoff positions.
Game Notes:
- Panthers Reporting that Nathan Horton will be in the lineup tonight for the Panthers
- The Coyotes ‘Magic Number’ to be guaranteed a playoff spot is at 6
- FYI Newly Acquired Defenseman Mathieu Schneider is wearing #23. If you don’t see his name in the lineup moving forward it’s not because he’s not on the team anymore, it’s because people are using names of players who used to wear Schneider’s number.
Things to watch for:
Goaltending – This game has the potential to be a goaltenders battle like it was in Nashville earlier this season. Goaltending is going to be a key element that dictates who wins.
Keys to the game:
Beat Vokoun – Along with Bryz, he is one of the top netminders in this league. If the team in front of him brings a great effort tonight, we may have another close, grinding game.
Take advantage of the Power Play time – The Panthers have the 29th best Power Play in the League but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they can’t score as the Coyotes have similar Power Play numbers. However, as the Coyotes have one of the best penalty killing units in the league, this will be a challenge to maintain this excellent stat. On the flip side the Coyotes can take advantage of the fact that the Panthers have the 25th best penalty killing unit in the league when on the Power Play.
Don’t allow the Panthers any space to shoot – The game tonight has the makings, on paper, to be another tight defensive battle. However, I’m hesitant to fully say that this is going to be the case as the Panthers lost their last game to Washington 7-3.
Officials:
Referees – # 14 Dennis LaRue; #28 Chris Lee
Linesmen – #78 Brian Mach; #92 Mark Shewchyk
Injuries/Scratches:
Coyotes: Kurt Sauer(IR), Scottie Upshall(IR), Robert Lang(Day to Day),
Panthers: Byron Bitz (IR)
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