NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman speaks with Dave Strader and Darren Pang on Fox Sports Arizona Wednesday night during the 1st Intermission about the current state of the Phoenix Coyotes.

Click to hear the full interview courtesy of FSN Arizona:

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- Todd

Think this job is cool?  Get to fly around North America, stay at the best hotels, see hockey games at some of the best arenas in the world….yeah, it’s cool. Really cool.  But no matter how many games you covered, no matter how thick your skin becomes, some nights it just isn’t easy walking into the locker room to talk to a team, a player, or a coach, after a gut wrenching defeat.

And that’s exactly what happened last night at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.  The undermanned Coyotes battled and battled back all night long before tying the score late in the third.  At point was within reach.  Perhaps even two.  A losing streak was about to come to an end.

Then it happened. A hooking penalty on Joel Perrault at 19:14 of the third.  A PP goal at 19:21 and it was over.  The streak continues.  The free fall remains in motion.

Listen in on the emotion of the moment from Ed Jovanovski, Shane Doan and Wayne Gretzky:

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Back on the ice Saturday night at home against Carolina.  See you then on AZTV.

- Todd

This is going to be like this for the rest of the season! Strap in.  Here it comes….one or two losses can drop you all the way out of the playoffs in the blink of an eye. Winning is all that matters. Scoreboard watching will drive you insane.

The Buffalo Sabres did  what they have been doing since they have been hurt by injuries to their blue line. They give you the perimeter and take away the center of the ice. But that doesn’t explain or account for the lack of execution on the power play. It has been painful to watch for the last few games.

Frankly, it has cost them the last two games. It won’t get any easier with back to back games out on the road to Nashville and Detroit this week. But listen to what the coach had to say. He is still encouraged by
the overall effiort.

Click for Wayne’s comments:

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We’ll see you on Fox Sports Arizona Tuesday and Wednesday night. And, be sure to stay tuned to the intermission segments on Wednesday from Joe Louis Arena as NHL Commish Gary Bettman will call in. It’s an important moment in the history of the franchise as he will address the financial situation of the Phoenix Coyotes.

- Todd

Finally a break for the Phoenix Coyotes. Steven Reinprecht not on the shelf for as long as originally feared. The first word was 4 to 8 weeks, but that changed this morning.  Listen in on head coach Wayne Gretzky as he discusses that and tonight’s game with the high flying Buffalo Sabres at Jobing.com Arena.

Click to hear:

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We’ll see you on AZ TV!

- Todd

Host Rod Black is joined by former NHL’er Tim Taylor, as they talk with Toronto Maple Leafs hero, Doug Gilmour.  Doug joins the radio show right before his jersey retirement held at the Air Canada Centre. Other guests include Bob Errey, Dustin Penner and Phil Esposito. Listen now.

Live From Wayne Gretzky’s is 2-hours of interactive radio from Wayne Gretzky’s Restaurant in Toronto. Listen every Saturday afternoon on NHL Home Ice, your local radio station or by podcast.

Radio Show / Podcast

Take a listen to this feature celebrating the Arizona Cardinals visit in tomorrow’s Super Bowl.  The segment will run during the Coyotes broadcast tonight as they face the Buffalo Sabres.

Click to listen:

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- Todd

If the Cardinals can go to the Super Bowl then it stands to reason that the Coyotes can spank the Red Wings, right?  I won’t bore you.  It’s the All-Star Break and I am about to go deep undercover like the rest of us non All-Stars.

I will say this, we just witnessed another piece of the foundation.  Another hurdle. Another part of the process.  Yeah, we could talk secondary scoring and goaltending and the speed of Enver Lisin ’til we are all blue in the face.

Me?  I’d rather talk about a huge feel good win for the home town crowd in a city that has made an emotional investment in a football team, and, to me, is therefore ripe to fall in love with another.  And, it’s worth the effort.

More from Coach Gretzky:

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Enjoy the break and we will see you again next Tuesday on Fox Sports Arizona as the Coyotes resume play against the Ducks!!!

- Todd

For the first time in front of the Phoenix media, Wayne addressed the issue of the current state of financial affairs for the Phoenix Coyotes. He and his team had been peppered with questions throughout the most recent road trip through Canada.

Here is what Wayne had to say today:

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Yes, there are issues and yes, the team has asked the league for and will get assistance in finding potential investors.

- Todd

And finally….a couple of post game comments from Wayne and Jovo.  If you had said “500 road trip” back when this thing started in frigid Minnesota, I can think of about 30 people who would have jumped off a bridge for that!  As it is, the Coyotes had a very real chance to win last night. They could have folded, down 3-1 after one, but didn’t. The fourth line had a nice night,  Peter Mueller is red hot and Bryz kept the team afloat in the third of what was a one goal game.

Asking any team to play back to back nights at the conclusion of a road trip, coming off an emotional and hard fought win in Calgary is a tall order. Now, the focus must come back for one more before the All-Star Break.  Oh, and by the way, that’s Detroit rolling into town.

Coach Gretzky:

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Off day tomorrow.  See you Tuesday night on Fox Sports Arizona.

And remember, ain’t flying under the radar anymore. Not this group. Who would have thought? Sort of like the Arizona Cardinals who spent the last couple of years changing the culture of an entire organization. They had a plan and stuck to it. Sound familiar???

- Todd

There are some things that you just can’t believe you get a chance to witness. It happens every so often in my job and last night was one of those nights that you bookmark for the rest of your life.  If you are a hockey fan and you find yourself in Edmonton, Alberta and at a rink that features Mark Messier, Jarri Kurri, Grant Fuhr, Paul Coffey, Wayne Gretzky and Glenn Anderson, well, let’s just say you might want to sit back and enjoy the ride.

And that’s what we did last night, despite the outcome of the game itself. To witness Anderson’s number 9 thrust into the rafters, and him receiving one last pass from Messier as he flew down the right wing was the stuff you write home about. (Or, you write it on your blog!)

My personal favorite moment? The decision to put John Muckler on the Coyotes bench!  What a classy move. And it obviously meant a great deal to a man who has given his entire life to the game of hockey. That was one of the topics of conversation with Gretzky just moments before the ceremony.

Listen below for a tribute to Glenn that ran on our game broadcast and Wayne’s comments prior to the special ceremony.

Wayne on Glenn’s ceremony:

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Broadcast Tribute:

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As a bonus, here is Glen Sather from right after the ceremony.  Interesting to note that he was asked about Wayne’s comments regarding the potential NEXT name to hang from the rafters.

Slats:

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A tip of the hat to the entire Oiler’s organization. They put on a helluva show and really know how to roll out the red carpet. They have built a wonderful connection between past and present Oilers.

It’s quite a fraternity.

- Todd