The Arizona Coyotes had promise in the first half of the 2023-24 NHL season. And for a while, it seemed as if the team would contend for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. However, the wheels fell off the wagon once the calendar turned to 2024. And on Tuesday, Arizona was officially eliminated from playoff contention.
Though the playoffs were always a long shot, this is still a bit of a disappointing end. The Coyotes played incredibly well and showed a ton of promise. But once things went south, Arizona fell and they fell hard. A major reason behind this is a 14-game losing streak from late January to late February. In fact, they didn't win a single game in February.
Arizona has no choice now but to look to the future. And this is a team with a rather complicated future. Especially when it comes to issues off the ice. However, let's take a look at the positives. Here are two reasons for Coyotes fans to keep the faith despite a disappointing end to their run at the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Youth movement
One reason to get behind the Coyotes is their influx of young talent. Arizona has one of the most promising prospect pipelines in the NHL. The Athletic recently ranked their farm system as the ninth-best in the entire league. And this isn't even mentioning the players that have graduated out of prospect status.
At the NHL level, the Coyotes are extremely excited about Logan Cooley. The former third-overall pick shockingly signed with the team over the summer after initially deciding to return to school. In his rookie campaign, Arizona gave him a big role right away. He slotted in as the team's second-line center for most of the season.
Cooley didn't put up otherworldly numbers, but he certainly made an impression. The 19-year-old has 13 goals and 34 points through 72 games this season. He formed chemistry with another promising player in winger Dylan Guenther. Guenther, 20, made his debut in January and has scored 23 points in 35 games.
There are other players who have made an impression at the NHL level. Defenseman Michael Kesselring, 24, chipped in a bit of offense from the point as a rookie. And he had an overall promising campaign next to Juuso Valimaki. Forward Josh Doan recently made the NHL and scored twice in his debut.
Arizona has names worth watching outside the NHL, as well. Waiting in the wings are highly-regarded prospects Conor Geekie, Daniil But, and Dmitri Simashev. The Coyotes have a lot of talent ready to make an impact, no matter how you slice it. And if everything goes right, the Yotes could become one of the league's best teams.
A draft stockpile
What makes this all the more interesting is that the Coyotes aren't done building. Arizona had 12 picks in the 2023 NHL Draft, selecting But and Simashev in the first round. In 2024, the team has even more draft capital to work with. The Coyotes have 13 picks in the 2024 NHL Draft, including seven in the first three rounds.
The 2024 NHL Draft is not thought to be as deep as last year's class. Still, there is some intriguing talent to be found this year. Even beyond the draft, this amount of draft capital gives Arizona a ton of options. They can keep them all and further stock their prospect pipeline. Perhaps they use some of the picks and trade up in the early rounds. Or, maybe the Coyotes roster gets an immediate upgrade through trade.
It's astonishing to think that Arizona could strengthen an already remarkable prospect pipeline. If they hit on even two or three of these picks, they are set up well for the long run. And it could give them an even more formidable outlook than they already have.
Follow Us
Subscribe