Thought you might enjoy this piece that ran during our Coyotes/Ducks Broadcast.  We put this segment together that features Wayne and Darren Pang on the great career of Scott Niedermeyer.  By the way Maple Leaf Fans – did you know who missed joining your team because of a trade with the New Jersey Devils?

Click to hear:

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- Todd

So what if the Vancouver Canucks are one of the hottest teams in hockey? They didn’t look like it last night. The Coyotes controlled the play from the start, earned a one nothing lead after one period of play and cruised to a 5-1 win.  It has been a great week of hockey starting with Tuesday’s huge win over San Jose. A week that started with two grueling practices.  But I will remember this night for more than the game on the ice. The game in the building was just as entertaining. The place was alive and awash with fans from north of the border who made themselves heard early and often. In a cool sort of way that fired up the Coyotes fans.  It was just nice to see.

Listen to what Coach Gretzky had to say:

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Speaking of that … I have also included a radio feature that will air on Sunday regarding Dan Winnik who has now scored 4 times on Hockey Night in Canada but has yet to be interviewed between periods.  That’s not right!  He and his captain Shane Doan played along with the line of questioning.  It was that kind of night.

Click to hear Dan Winnik:

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And we can’t forget the Phoenix Coyotes celebrated 80′s night at the rink during the game.  Take a listen to this fun piece I did with Wayne for our broadcast:

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The Coyotes are off to Anaheim on Sunday to visit the Ducks.

- Todd

It was another fun night at the rink. We saw a team that was in constant motion, utilizing their speed and a promising concoction of line combinations over come some adversity in the form of a brutal goal call, earn a point and some self respect. Back to back games where the home town team left the fans in the house wanting more.

More from Wayne:

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- Todd

Here’s hoping for a repeat performance of Tuesday night. Early jump and a lead, a physical force, poise with the puck on the power play, strong goaltending … hey, let’s get greedy and skip the part about blowing the lead. It’s one of those scorching hot days in the valley. The kind of day that you want to turn into a night at the rink!

Here is pre-game with the coach:

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- Todd

At long last, the Coyotes with a game that fans will talk about for days … a ferocious start, a physical presence, a gut wrenching game tying goal late all concluding with the game winner from the Captain with under a minute to go.  It was a game that we will remember long after the season is done.

Click to hear from Wayne:

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It was the kind of win that a young group of players can build upon.  They skated early, played with confidence, took San Jose’s best comeback and found a way to win.  Hey, it was just a great night, a fun game to watch.

Also, this is pretty interesting … especially after what Brian McGratton did last night.  Listen to this BONUS feature about the story of Brian including comments from Coach Gretzky:

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See you Thursday night on Fox Sports Arizona!

- Todd

Listen now to pre-game comments from Wayne regarding tonight’s game with San Jose.  One story line to follow is the return of Brian McGratton to the team after a stint in the league’s substance abuse program. He will play tonight.  Also, there is an interesting discussion about the Sharks and a comparison to the glory days of the Edmonton Oilers.

Click to listen:

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We will see you tonight on Fox Sports Arizona starting at 6:30 with Coyotes LIVE.

- Todd

I think we all expected a bit of a let down after coming back from what was a grueling and emotionally draining ten day road trip. But I think we all also expected that the effort needed to over come that malaise would throttle that by, oh, say the second period. It never came. What happened last night was unacceptable. The Coyotes were in single digits in shots after TWO periods on home ice. The frustration mounts…you can hear it.  Click to listen:

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It won’t get any easier on Tuesday night against San Jose as a four game home stand continues. See you at 6:30 on Coyotes Live on Fox Sports Arizona.

- Todd

Well, at the very least we got to see a prelude to a piece of hockey history, but that’s not why we came to New Jersey! A long night for the Coyotes as the New Jersey Devils stormed to an early lead and cruised to a 5-2 win.  For a moment in the first period this was a hockey game as Phoenix cashed when they had to, on a four minute power play. But the Devils are just too good and this is their time of year. As Tyson Nash said on the radio broadcast, “this is a team that is built for the playoffs.”  They sure are.

Coach Gretzky:

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The longest trip of the year felt like the longest trip of the year.  But home awaits and as you will hear Shane Doan say, there are players playing for jobs.  Is there any better motivation?

- Todd

No, Detroit wasn’t at their best, their goaltending was shaky, and yes, the Coyotes got great goaltending, a power play goal and a goal from Martin Hanzal. Soooooo what happened? The great teams find ways to win this time of year.  For some reason the Coyotes have played the Red Wings tough all year.  But playing tough isn’t going be enough against a power house on their home ice.

Hear Wayne’s comments on the game by clicking below:

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The journey continues to Newark!

- Todd

Thought you would be interested in this piece on the football players lost at sea. One of them is a valley product. His father is a sports anchor in town. A great guy who always tries to cover the Coyotes when he can.  Long story … put this piece together that is running on Sunday’s pre-game show.  It’s another example of the class of a guy like Shane Doan.

Click below to listen:

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- Todd