The Coyotes Thursday night matchup against the Blues marks Matias Maccelli's 100th game in the NHL.
While tonight may just be another ordinary game for the Arizona Coyotes as they face the St. Louis Blues, it has more meaning for forward Matias Maccelli.
Maccelli is set to play in his 100th career NHL game. This is an amazing feat for a player that was drafted in the fourth round and had to grind his way to the NHL.
Generally it’s difficult to become a regular NHL player being drafted at that position but Maccelli proved after two years in Liiga and a strong stint in the AHL with the Tucson Roadrunners that he deserves a shot to compete at the highest level.
That opportunity was given to him last season when he played a total of 64 games. Maccelli fully took advantage of this opportunity tallying 11 goals, 38 assists and 49 points.
The young forward proved to be not just a good passer but a great one. He impressed the Coyotes organization so much that he was awarded with a three-year, $10.2 million contract this past offseason.
Now at 23-years-old, Maccelli has looked even better to start the 2023-24 campaign. He currently has two goals, eight assists and 10 points in 12 games.
Maccelli is one of the better young playmakers in the NHL today. The national media and all NHL fans have to start taking notice of Maccelli because he is only getting better each and every game.
Going into his 100th NHL game, Maccelli is excited and should be proud of all the work he has put in to get to this point.
“Ya I mean it's awesome,” Maccelli said. “It’s the first time I’ve ever played 100 games in any league so I mean it’s pretty special to do it in this league for the first time. Pretty excited for tonight.”