Darren Pang appears courtesy of PhoenixCoyotes.com

With veteran goalie Jason LaBarbera now in the fold, the first thing that comes to my mind is the size of the tandem Grant Fuhr and the Coyotes coaching staff have to work with.

Both LaBarbera (6-foot-3, 225 pounds) and Ilya Bryzgalov (6-3, 199) are imposing figures, leaving very little room for shooters to see any net.

LaBarbera has made a living combining a few terrific qualities, most notably he is a very hard-working person that endears himself to his teammates. I have said this many times. When your goalie has a great team-first attitude, the players want to battle for him. He will stay on the ice until the last player is off at practice, willing the puck to hit his large body.

A few years ago, LaBarbera got “stuck” in the minors while with the Los Angeles Kings. He could not be recalled, as he would have been plucked on “re-callable waivers” and the Kings didn’t want to lose him, therefore he stayed in the American Hockey League, and was that league’s best goalie.

He is fundamentally sound in net and has the proper mind-set to be a backup, as he was last season, watching one of the best in Roberto Luongo in Vancouver.

This is a good signing that appears to leave Josh Tordjman and Al Montoya on the outside looking in. I feel for both, as I have been there myself. This move will really test their confidence and self motivation, but as we all know, a spot in the NHL can be an injury away, or a hot streak in the minors.

Montoya played really well in his brief NHL stint at the end of last season with the Coyotes. He needs to visualize and capture his performance in the San Jose game as his standard. He proved he can stop the big boys.

- Panger

Darren Pang appears courtesy of PhoenixCoyotes.com

Sometimes when a team hits rock bottom, and judging by the closed door post game meeting after the loss to Carolina on Saturday night, that’s exactly what the Coyotes did, you turn to your goaltender.  Sometimes your goalie just has to step up and steal a game.

That’s what happened last night in Dallas. Ilya Bryzgalov stopped 33 shots for his 8th career shutout as a six game losing streak came to a end against the once red hot Dallas Stars.  Even with Bryz’s play, there was more-24 blocked shots tell a story of a team that was ready to go and ready to make the personal sacrifice that you must make night after grueling night in this league.

Listen in on the coach and few players afterwards and tune in tonight as the Coyotes go back to back!
It’s Vancouver and it’s on AZ TV.

Click to hear:

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- Todd

When a team goes 0 for 9 on the power play in a 4 nothing loss at home, you can bet you’re gonna see some special teams work at practice, and that’s exactly what happened today at Jobing.com Arena.

Z on the point, pucks to the net….Bryz is a game time decision with a back injury.  Coach Gretzky provides his thoughts.  Simply click to listen:

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See you on New Year’s Eve at 5:30 on Quest Coyotes Live on Fox Sports Arizona!

- Todd

I know this much, good teams find a way to win games even when they aren’t playing their best hockey.  The Coyotes, to a man, admitted that they were sluggish and flat to start the game and that if not for goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov, it would have been over early.

But it wasn’t … and, as they say, the Coyotes found a way to win, beating Columbus 2 to nothing, completing a four game season sweep of the Blue Jackets (unheard of these days in hockey). And, don’t look now, but they won at home. Again.

They are now on the inside of the Western Conference playoff race and it is starting to feel like it’s gonna stay that way for awhile.  Perhaps they are, as one pro scout said to me during the game, “ready to put a streak together.”

Wayne’s comments:

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So, tomorrow, it’s off to Edmonton and Denver.  Back to back, on the road, prior to the holiday break. A challenge, no doubt, but during the week of Christmas, I always find that the road teams seem to play the better, more well rounded game.  Can you say, “distraction?”  Yes, it’s true.  Hockey players are human, they do buy presents and have to deal with family, too!

Still, I feel a four point trip!

See you Monday from Edmonton where it’s only 14 below Fahrenheit!

- Todd

So here we are…..in Columbus, Ohio. Should be an interesting game tonight at Nationwide Arena. Both teams on a roll, the Blue Jackets have won three straight, the Coyotes coming off that big weekend at home with wins over Florida, and San Jose. Both games featuring the Coyotes exploding for four unanswered goals.

It had the makings of a lost weekend, but now it has the potential for a pretty nice spring board. Listen in on Wayne’s discussion today. There is some very enlightening comments about goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov and his team’s new found ability to come from behind.

Click to listen:

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There is no Coyotes television coverage of this game. So, check us out on the Coyotes Radio network, or, tomorrow night on Fox Sports Arizona from St. Paul, Minnesota.

Gonna be a whirlwind of hockey!
Can’t wait.

- Todd

JUST ADDED: Click to hear Hitch’s comments from earlier today…

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Make no mistake, this is captain Shane Doan’s and the rest of the veteran players’ team in Phoenix.

It proudly displays the faces of Doan, Olli Jokinen, Ed Jovanovski, Derek Morris and Ilya Bryzgalov on the cover of its media guide, and it should.

You don’t just anoint the franchise to four rookies if you are saying you are a playoff team and a team that will compete for the Stanley Cup. The good teams in the NHL all know that is just too much responsibility and it clearly would show a lack of respect for just how good this league is and just how good the veteran, proven players are day in and day out.

That being said, the time is now for many franchises to showcase their top prospects to the rest of the NHL.

The Coyotes, because of some poor regular season showings and some terrific drafting, have a cupboard full of high end prospects. These kids are certainly the real deal. They have uncanny hockey sense and a burning desire to be great players. They train hard, eat well and practice like it will be their last one in the NHL. It is infectious.

I like the message that was sent last week to the four players. General Manager Don Maloney sat Kyle Turris, Kevin Porter, Mikkel Boedker and Viktor Tikhonov down before practice
at Alltel Ice Den in Scottsdale and sent a very simple message.

It went something like this:

You all are going to be terrific players.

You deserve to be here in this lineup.

Don’t back down…ever on the ice.

Hold your own in scrums, don’t shy away. It doesn’t mean fight. It means be there, with your chin in the middle of it. The military will be right behind any one of you…no matter what happens.

Head Coach Wayne Gretzky also sat down with them. His ability to read the right situation and say things at the right time is as uncanny as the magical passes he slid across the crease to Jarri Kurri. He gives these kids, and the rest of the players, so much confidence by saying something so simple.

The other day at practice, there was Gretzky at center ice with Turris. The conversation was calm and directly to the point.

“Have fun out here. Don’t press. You are here for a long time. The best thing about being in the NHL is it is fun, so have fun. ”

You know that Gretzky will put these kids in an environment to succeed. He was so good last season with Martin Hanzel and Peter Mueller. You sometimes have to “hide” players on
the road against veteran teams. They may not see the last three minutes of a close game. That’s the process for the long run. They have to build confidence along the way.

This season, the Coyotes will need all four of these freshman to be players. They will have off nights and they will be stars of games.

The moxie will have to be there too. The other teams have to know they won’t wilt away when the going gets tough.

I believe that won’t be a problem.

For gretzky.com, I’m Darren Pang.