The opening week of the NHL season brings us an interconference matchup as a pair of teams open up their seasons in the Steel City. It’s the Arizona Coyotes are on the road as they make the cross-country trip to face the Pittsburgh Penguins Thursday night. Arizona finished last season with a 25-50-7 record to end up in the cellar of the Central Division and out of the postseason for the ninth time in the last 10 seasons. Pittsburgh finished last season 46-25-11 to end up third in the Metropolitan Division but was eliminated in seven games in the first round of the playoffs by the Rangers. The Penguins own a 9-0-1 record in the last 10 meetings between the teams, including a 4-1 road triumph on March 19, 2022.
Arizona started slow and never really kicked it into gear as they were buried in the basement of the Central Division and the Western Conference as a whole. The Coyotes didn’t make any major splashes in the free agent market in the offseason as they brought back Nick Bjugstad while inking Josh Brown, Troy Stecher and Jon Gillies to deals. Arizona also acquired Zack Kassian from Edmonton and Patrik Nemeth from the Rangers in minor deals. Phil Kessel (Golden Knights), Alex Galchenyuk (Avalanche), Antoine Roussel (Flyers) and Hudson Fasching (Islanders) all departed in the offseason while Lawson Crouse was inked to a new five-year deal, keeping a valuable piece still in the mix. The Coyotes also drafted Logan Cooley with the third overall pick but he’ll spend the season playing for the University of Minnesota so he won’t be contributing out of the gate.
Arizona finished last season 32nd in the league in goals per game as they averaged 2.51 goals a night this season. The Coyotes were 30th in goals against as they allowed an average of 3.77 goals per game on the year. Arizona was 30th in the league in power play success as they converted 13.9% of their chances with the man advantage last season. The Coyotes were tied for 28th in the league in penalty killing as they successfully navigated through 75% of their shorthanded situations. Finishing last, third-to-last, third-to-last and tied for fifth-worst in the four major categories doesn’t scream as a harbinger for success. Karel Vejmelka, who was 13-32-3 with a 3.68 GAA, .898 save % and one shutout in 52 appearances, 49 starts, is expected to get the start in goal for this contest. He led the league in losses a season ago.