Blackhawks: Coyotes are as good as they’ve ever been

The Chicago Blackhawks have won a couple of games in a row and the Arizona Coyotes bring their playoff-hopeful selves to the United Center.

The Chicago Blackhawks are going to face the Arizona Coyotes at home tonight. They are coming off an impressive back to back with the Boston Bruins and New Jersey Devils. Those are two completely different teams but they are both loaded with talent that Chicago was able to get the best of. Now they have to deal with the Coyotes who are amidst what might end up being one of their most successful seasons.

The last time the Yotes made it to the Stanley Cup playoffs they defeated the Blackhawks in round number one. It took the Coyotes six games to win that series and they rode that wave all the way to the Western Conference Finals where they were eventually defeated by the eventual champion Los Angeles Kings. Arizona believes that they can have a similar level of success this season and beyond. They are one of three Western Conference teams (Minnesota Wild, Winnipeg Jets) to never reach the Stanley Cup Final.

The Coyotes are a very unique team for today’s NHL. They don’t have one player that is a point per game guy. Phil Kessel has been that guy in the past but he isn’t scoring as he did back when he was with the Pittsburgh Penguins or Toronto Maple Leafs. Their leading scorer is former Blackhawk Nick Schmaltz who has 20 points in 31 games. They do, however, have eleven players who have at least double-digit points so they are getting scoring from everyone.

There is no one guy to focus on because they can all burn you. The thing that makes them extra good is their goaltending. You could make a claim that both Darcy Kuemper and Antti Raanta have a chance at the Vezina Trophy for the league’s top goaltender. They are a hard team to score on and that has allowed them to win games. The Blackhawks have a run and gun style so it will be fun to see how they are able to handle playing a team like the Coyotes. This is for sure a game that the Blackhawks can use as a measuring stick for themselves because Arizona is good.

Anyone who expects the same old Coyotes is going to be very let down when they watch this game. Their management group has done a fine job of using assets and cap space to rebuild this team to the point where they are now on the rise. They could look at the trade deadline for some options to help them up front but right now the Blackhawks have this dangerous group to contend with.