On Tuesday night, the Arizona Coyotes arguably face their toughest challenge of this young 2023-24 season. The Coyotes are yet to play one of the few so called ‘powerhouse’ teams in the Western Conference but that all changes Tuesday as they are set for a matchup against the Dallas Stars. Dallas currently holds first place in the Central Division by a wide margin with a 10-3-1 record and 21 points. Offensively, the Stars are loaded, consisting of a group of talented forwards including Jason Robertson, Wyatt Johnston, Joe Pavelski, Roope Hintz and newly acquired Matt Duchene. On the Defensive side of the puck, the Stars have a potential Norris Trophy finalist in Miro Heiskanen and a world-class goalie in Jake Oettinger. This will be no easy challenge for the Coyotes, a team that has looked great some nights and sluggish on other nights. However, a win in Dallas changes everything for Arizona. It would be a huge statement win for the Coyotes if they are able to go to the Stars home and come out with a victory. André Tourigny spoke following the Coyotes 7-5 victory over the Predators. The Coyotes have shown they are capable of scoring multiple goals in a game so they have the potential to hang around with Dallas just because of their revamped offense. Arizona will have to stay disciplined while also locking down defensively, both have been a bit of a struggle as of late. If the Coyotes are able to steal a win in Dallas, morale will most definitely go up as well as the confidence level of the team. These are the types of games that the Coyotes are not expected to win but they have to start taking if they want to grow as an organization and become a playoff-caliber team in the West.
