(Best E Casino) - The Phoenix Coyotes are heading into their fourth season with the legendary Wayne Gretzky as their head coach, but even the "Great One" needs to make the playoffs to keep a job in the NHL.
Gretzky had his best season behind the bench in 2007-08, posting a career-high 83 points and finishing fourth in the Pacific Division. However, the Coyotes still ended eight points out of the eighth and final postseason berth in the Western Conference.
The feeling this year is that the Coyotes can make the playoffs and that has a lot to do with the arrival of a legitimate No. 1 goaltender in Ilya Bryzgalov, who was acquired off waivers from Anaheim during last season.
In addition, the Coyotes went out this summer and traded for centerman Olli Jokinen, acquiring the Florida Panthers all-time leader in goals and assists for defensemen Nick Boynton and Keith Ballard. The arrival of Jokinen should help offset the loss of right wing Radim Vrbata, who was second on the team last year with 27 goals and 56 points, but signed with Tampa Bay in the offseason.
Things are looking up in the desert, but the Coyotes haven't made the postseason since 2002. Could that streak end this season? It's hard to say, but Phoenix has a better chance of getting to the playoffs than it did this time last year and that's as good a place to start as any.
FORWARDS - With the arrival of Jokinen to play center, the Coyotes now have the pieces to form a potent top line that could feature captain Shane Doan and Peter Mueller on the wings.
Jokinen had somewhat of a down year for the Panthers last year, but still was good for 34 goals and 71 points. He had 89 points two years ago and a career- high 91 points in 2006-07.
The 29-year-old Finn will also bring a great deal of leadership as he had been Florida's captain since the 2003-04 campaign.
Meanwhile, the 6-2, 220-pound Doan combines offensive skill with toughness and is a reliable two-way player for Gretzky. He had his best statistical season in 2007-08, notching a career-high 78 points (28 goals, 50 assists) while playing in 80 contests.
Doan has spent his entire career with the Winnipeg/Phoenix franchise and is the only remaining holdover from the days of the Jets, who moved to Arizona and became the Coyotes for the start of the 1996-97 campaign.
Mueller was a revelation for the Coyotes last year, tying Chicago's Jonathan Toews for third in rookie scoring with 54 points (22g, 32a). This year, the Coyotes are switching the 20-year-old Minnesotan from his natural center position to left wing.
The second-line center should be Martin Hanzal, a 21-year-old who also turned in a solid rookie season last year. The native Czech posted just eight goals in 72 games, but showed good playmaking skills with his 27 assists. Hanzal's numbers should increase as he'll continue to get more playing time this year.
Left wing Daniel Carcillo, also a rookie in 2007-08, played the tough guy role for the Coyotes and wound up leading the NHL with 324 penalty minutes. However, the Coyotes believe the 23-year-old Carcillo, who had 13 goals and 11 assists last year, has the offensive ability to be more than an enforcer.
Like Carcillo, Daniel Winnik was a rookie left wing in 2007-08 and impressed with 26 points (11g, 15a) in 79 contests last year. Carcillo and Winnik will likely take spots on the second and third lines.
This year, the Coyotes are also expected to use center Kyle Turris, the third overall pick in the 2007 draft, on a full-time basis. The 19-year-old played last year at the University of Wisconsin and tallied 35 points (11g, 24a) in 36 games with the Badgers. The 6-1 British Columbia native is undersized at 170 pounds, but has very good speed and terrific hands.
Phoenix also picked up a pair of big wingers in the offseason, acquiring Brian McGrattan (6-4, 231 pounds) in a trade with Ottawa and signing Todd Fedoruk (6-2, 235) to a three-year contract. Both players are expected to add toughness and checking ability to the Coyotes lines.
DEFENSE - Ed Jovanovski's first year as the main man on the Phoenix defense during the 2006-07 season was less than stellar, leaving many critics to believe that signing Jovo to a five-year, $32.5 million deal was an error in judgment.
However, the five-time All-Star bounced back with a much better effort in 2007-08, as he led all Phoenix defensemen with 51 points (12g, 39a) to make a 22-point improvement in his output from the previous season. The main factor in Jovanovski's improvement was his health, as he battled an abdominal injury and played in just 54 games during 2006-07.
Also back on the blueline will be veteran Derek Morris, who played solid defense and notched eight goals and 17 assists last year. Zbynek Michalek, 25, will also return after recording 17 points (4g, 13a) and leading Phoenix with a plus-nine rating in 75 games.
In an attempt to add some depth back to the blueline after dealing Boynton and Ballard in the Jokinen deal, Coyotes general manager Don Maloney signed free agent Kurt Sauer and David Hale in the offseason. Neither player will help on the offensive end, but both can be counted on to log quality minutes for Phoenix.
The Coyotes are also expected to use 22-year-old defensemen Keith Yandle more often this year after the former fourth-round pick played in 43 games and recorded 12 points (5g, 7a) for Phoenix last season.
GOALTENDING - The pick-up of Bryzgalov last November was an important step for the development of the Coyotes and gave the club a blossoming talent between the pipes.
Bryzgalov was waived by Anaheim after the club failed in its attempt to trade the Russian netminder. The Ducks would've liked to have gotten something in return for the 6-3 Bryzgalov, but he was ultimately disposable with Jean- Sebastien Giguere entrenched as the starter in Anaheim.
Bryzgalov played in 55 games with the Coyotes in 2007-08 and went 26-22-5 with a 2.44 goals against average and a stellar .920 save percentage. Phoenix didn't even wait until the end of the year to sign the goaltender to an extension, awarding Bryzgalov with a three-year, $12.75 million contract in January.
The Coyotes are expected to use Mikael Tellqvist as the backup to Bryzgalov after he went 9-8-2 with a 2.75 GAA and .908 save percentage last year.
WHEN ALL IS SAID AND DONE - The Coyotes, even with the arrival of Jokinen, are still not quite a playoff-caliber team, but they should at least challenge for a postseason berth for most of the year. Phoenix is willingly taking the deliberate path to success and the rebuilding process will likely give Gretzky additional time as head coach unless the team takes a major step back in 2008-09. The good news is the franchise has a great deal of young talent on the squad and the development of those players should keep hockey fans in Phoenix entertained for the time being.
