The Arizona Coyotes defeated the San Jose Sharks 5-2 on Thursday night which marked their fourth consecutive victory. The Coyotes were coming off an emotional 4-3 win on Tuesday night over the Ottawa Senators where they overcame a three-goal deficit. In the first period of play, the Coyotes were not at their best, being out shot by San Jose 12-7 while getting bombarded with pressure from the Sharks towards the end of the opening frame. Karel Vejmelka kept Arizona in it during San Jose’s onslaught as he continued to make save after save and his calm composure would elevate his team as the game went on. The second period marked the Clayton Keller show. He started it all off by giving Michael Kesselring a beautiful feed leading to a goal. Keller went on a breakaway a few minutes later and layed out a nifty move, squeezing the puck through the five hole giving the Coyotes a 2-1 lead. It wasn’t just Keller, but his two linemates, Alexander Kerfoot and Nick Schmaltz both tallied goals in this game. This line has truly been electric since Kerfoot was slotted in a couple games ago. All three players just possess speed that helps them maintain high quality puck possession and just flat out dominate the opposition, something they have now become accustomed to doing. Keller has been great all season, but he is truly starting to hit his stride. He recorded three points during Thursday night’s win and is controlling the pace of play through his incredible skating, vision and puck handling skills. It really is marveling to watch. Similar to their victory against the Senators, when the Coyotes want to turn on an offensive switch they are definitely able to. They now have four solid lines that each add their own unique factor and that has clearly shown through their past two matchups. 20231221_Tourigny_PostGame_FTP As the Coyotes continue to win, their spot in the Western Conference playoff race is getting more secure despite still a lot of hockey to be played. They currently hold the second wild card spot by three points. Arizona’s goaltenders are hot, their defensemen are getting healthy and offensively they continue to show explosiveness. It’s a perfect formula for success which is finally beginning to translate into wins.
