HatTrick Hound here reporting from In The Crease.
CoyotesFest was the first time this offseason I got to look out on the ice and see the guys practice or play, and let me tell you, we have an exciting season in front of us!! Since Onyx decided to miss the most exciting parts of the scrimmage and practice to go watch Carci and Bods test their knowledge in “Are You Smarter Than a Hockey Player?”, she asked me to do a write-up of my thoughts and impressions getting to see everyone for the first time (her thoughts on the Fan Fest will be upcoming).
Every peak out from the crease here, I see a blur of a tasmanian devil, also known as the non-roster invitee Tyler Johnson. He is not one of those that the “puck follows him around on the ice” guys (which is something they say about Turris for instance), but he is hell bent on going to get it, from anywhere and everywhere. Not sure if he’s squeaking between their legs to get there first or what, but he is definitely all over going after the puck… and I for one, definitely enjoy and appreciate those players that play with such effort and energy.
Speaking of effort, there is one forward on the ice who doesn’t care that the Coyotes brought in some muscle via free agency, he was taking the body and didn’t care if that body belonged to Doan or Dmo.. his name is Adam Keefe. He was going after it so much, him and Dmo needed to be separated after the whistle one time. I heard someone behind me in the stands say… ‘now that’s not the way to make the the team, get in a scrap with a team captain’… though I disagree, standing up for himself and playing tough is exactly what the team was missing across the board last season, aka. Boynton standing up for his teammates as well as Carcillo (if you didn’t catch Carci’s offseason quote from Gintonio in the Republic: “Last year, we didn’t have too many guys who would fight, so I took it upon myself”).. so this offseason the Coyotes brought in some muscle and protection for the rookies, but having a Yote cub (in Keefe) who isn’t intimidated by who he’s playing against is a good thing… as long as he knows his limits.
A few of the Dmen looked good to me during the scrimmage and early practice, only one kept up that impression throughout all the drills, and that was Dylan Reese. Passes were tape to tape, he never seemed out of position (to my untrained eye), and was always giving a good effort. I liked the size and some of the play of Brodeur and Michael Stone… but the passes were kind of all over the place when they started those drills. I’m definitely no expert, but both Brodie and Stone need some skating work… sorry, but part of being a Dman is skating backwards and if I can see you’re struggling, Brodie, a forward with skill is gonna eat you for dinner.
Logan is definitly growing but still doesn’t seem to realize how big he is, but man he could be a monster once he fills out and gets some meat on his bones. Pretty much the same thing with Staal, not sure if he’s going through a growth spurt or what, but doesn’t realize how big and strong he is out there on the ice.
Colin Long had a nice hit on McGrattan, taking him off his feet… he got the crowd’s attention with that hit.
When everyone was done with the scrimmage and pretty much immediate practice that followed, there were only 3 players that I could see that didn’t seem entirely gassed.. Doaner, Dmo and Arizona’s own David Spina. Spina looked good, definitely had the legs and was jumping into plays whenever he saw a sliver of a chance. Keep it up David, you’re doing AZ proud!
Ah, Yandle… I’m trying to temper my thoughts cause I can see glimpses of moments here and there, especially with that cannon of a shot, but dayum… sometimes… just dayum! Ok, let me start on the offensive side… twice Team C had the puck in the offensive zone and he raised his stick to let them know he was open. Only problem is the puck was below the half wall, with a ton of defenders between him and the puck so whoever had the puck couldn’t see him. Did he move around so the guy with the puck could find him or see a lane to pass it through… uh, no. He stood there, just waiting for the puck to move around to him. Also, a poke check can be a wonderful thing.. there was at least once where the guy had the puck right out in front of him, and he was just trying to use his body to stop him from progressing in the offensive zone.
Lisin has speed that very few other players have, but he’s not going to see the ice this season if he doesn’t pass the puck. Passing drills down the ice finishing with a shot on goal, whoever was teamed with him would pass the puck around till it got to him, then he’d go one-on-one with the defender and take his shot. I can’t say that I saw one time that he made the pass to an open teammate after they had passed the redline.
Goalies all looked solid from my point of view, I can’t say there was much there that really stuck out to me. There was one great save on a Yandle shot from close in, I wanna say it was Telly that made the save, but I’m not positive. The goalie was on one post and made a nice glove save back across the crease. There were no spectacular plays made, nor were there any others needed, so maybe that’s a testimate to how well they were playing that they were always in position to make a stop. Oh also, dang their legs must be sore after practice.. with Grant putting them through up/down/up/down, slide left/slide right, up/down/up/down, dive forward/get up/dive forward/get up… wow he was putting them through it.
Dang I’m wordy tonight, I’ll try to hurry and wrap this up… Read the rest of this entry »
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