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Arizona Coyotes 2022-23 season in review: Road woes and uncertain future
The Arizona Coyotes, once again, failed to make the playoffs.
The Coyotes entered the 2022-23 season in the midst of a rebuild, but the hope was Arizona would take a small jump up in the standings. The plan was to get near the playoffs, and in the 2023-24 season, they could make a run at the playoffs.
But, before that happens, let's take a look at the Arizona Coyotes' 2022-23 season.
Arizona Coyotes finished sixth
Arizona was second last in the 2021-22 season, so the Coyotes did make a small improvement, but it still wasn't enough.
A massive reason for the Coyotes' struggles is the fact Arizona went a brutal 7-25-9 on the road this season. No playoff team can be that bad on the road, and there is no real reason as to why they struggled so much.
Winning on the road is much harder than at home, but borderline playoff teams should be around .500 which Arizona wasn't. At home, however, the Coyotes played really good hockey as Arizona went 21-15-5, which showed they can win games at this level and find success, which is something to take into next season.
Clayton Keller looking like a star for the Arizona Coyotes
Clayton Keller was supposed to be the best player for Arizona, and that is exactly what he was.
Keller played all 82 games - which is big for his future - as he has dealt with plenty of injuries in his career. But, in 82 games, he put up 86 points, and the next closest was Nick Schmaltz who only had 58 points as the Coyotes didn't score enough.
But, going into next season, Arizona knows they have a legit All-Star in Clayton Keller they can build around.
Murky future
Entering the season, the big question was, how would the Arizona Coyotes play at home in a 5000-seat college arena?
Ultimately, the Coyotes did find success at home, and the fans showed up as the arena was packed, and it was lively in there. The players even credited the fans for having so much success at home.
“It’s turned out much better than we had hoped in terms of the energy, the environment and the electricity,” club president Xavier Gutierrez said. “Fans have really taken to this experience. The sightlines are incredible.”
Although the team and players liked playing at Mullett Arena after the city of Tempe voted no on the arena, it seems like the days in Arizona are numbered.
Coyotes find goalie of the future
Although this Arizona Coyotes season was not what they expected, the success of Karel Vejmelka is massive for their future.
Vejmelka is 26-years-old and went 18-24-6 with a 3.43 GAA and a .900 SV%, but there is a lot of good to take away. Oftentimes this season, Vejmelka stole games for Arizona and kept them in games they didn't deserve to even be competitive in.
The stats may not look the prettiest, but Arizona was often dominated in games, and Vejmelka was hung out to dry. But his success should give the Coyotes confidence that they have a legit number-one goaltender going forward.
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