What We Learned From the Coyotes’ 14-Game Losing Streak

The Arizona Coyotes’ long losing skid is finally over with a win over the Ottawa Senators. The win ended the longest losing streak this season in the NHL. The streak put the wild card chase to bed for the Coyotes, sending them to the basement of the division, only in front of the Chicago Blackhawks. Now on a two-game winning streak, the team seems to have put the memories of the streak behind them, but there were some revealing factors hidden in those losses. What can be some learning points for this young team in the streak they just went on? 

Coyotes Cannot Play From Behind

A huge critique of the team from most fans and media was that the Coyotes couldn’t seem to play a full 60 minutes of hockey. They played well in the second period in a majority of the games but poor starts hampered the team. In most of the games, the Coyotes were scored on first within five minutes of the game starting. 

If it wasn’t the beginning that sucked for the Coyotes, it was the ending. A good game to point this flaw out in was the game in Nashville on Feb. 10. With a decent lead going into the third period, they went on to blow their lead, letting the Predators come back and tie the game, and eventually win it in overtime. 

Not every team can be like the Florida Panthers who have come back in games so often that they’ve adopted the nickname “Comeback Cats.” The Coyotes haven’t been known to play that type of hockey despite some games this season depicting it. The team needs to stick to the way they play which is putting up low shot totals but making those shots high-danger opportunities.

“It’s a process right now for us,” head coach Andre Tourigny said. “We’re going through an extremely tough situation. We’re the second-youngest team in the league. We’re growing, we’re learning out of it. Sometimes learning is through pain and we’re going through that right now. It’s really frustrating. In the last two games, I think we played like the Yotes. We played with a lot of energy, a lot of drive, a lot of passion. I’m proud of the way the guys have battled. Unfortunately, you could see the pressure getting to us. Like I said, we’re a young team, it’s a process. We’re proud of the way we battle. At the same time, we have to learn, learn to play in those critical situations. It’s the same thing, being down 3-0 in a series or being done 3-1, and you need to win the next game. It’s a lot of pressure. So our young team is…