The new year forever brings excitement worldwide as families gather to look back on the past year’s memories and others look ahead at what is to come next. While the Arizona Coyotes have had much talk surrounding them throughout this season, we take a peak at 2024, which could be the largest in franchise history. With myriad obstacles and challenges on the horizon, here are three questions whose answers could impact the trajectory and fate of this team’s future.
1. Does Clayton Keller Break Keith Tkachuk’s Point Record?
On March 30th, 2022, the entire hockey world passed for a moment as Clayton Keller crashed into the boards, and uncertainty rose throughout Gila River Arena. The Coyotes’ superstar lay in pain on the ice as the team’s trainer, Dave Zenobi, came onto the ice. Keller was put on a stretcher and was transported to the nearest hospital, where he was diagnosed with a fractured femur. He was having a career year and was on pace to break most of his personal records. That, unfortunately, didn’t happen, and his season came to an early close.
“I had never missed any time,” said Keller. “I’d never not been able to play the game, and then all of a sudden, I couldn’t do the things that I wanted to do. I couldn’t get out of bed. I couldn’t stand up on my own. I couldn’t get dressed. I was so lucky to have my mom [Kelley] there for the majority of the time because the first couple of days were just a lot of pain.”
Fast forward to the 2022-23 campaign, where Keller returned to the lineup with no preseason games to get his legs running; it was uncertain what he would look like on the ice. Well, he returned better than ever and tied the Coyotes franchise points record at 86, which Keith Tkachuk held. It was remarkable, and he was nominated for the Bill Masterton trophy. He didn’t win it, but to be nominated for such an award is something to be proud of.
Now, the question being asked is, can Keller break Tkachuk’s record of 86 this season and his own? Through the early goings, he is on pace for 30 goals and 75 points, 12 shy of what he needs to break the record. While the injury to Barrett Hayton has hurt Keller’s and Nick Schmaltz’s efforts, he still is the Coyotes focal point on offense. He is the player you want on the ice with one minute left on the clock or in the shootout. Keller will likely have his eyes on the record, looking to put his name in the record books.
2. Do the Coyotes End the Season in a Playoff Spot?
The Coyotes have yet to win a playoff series since their deep run in 2012, making it to the Western Conference Finals. Since then, that’s the closest the team has gotten. They made the playoffs in the 2020 bubble, but since then, it’s been rebuilding and stacking draft picks up on draft picks. They entered the 2023-24 campaign optimistic that this could be the season they return to postseason action. The offseason moves certainly showed that, as they signed veterans Jason Zucker, Matt Dumba, and Alex Kerfoot.
Currently, the Coyotes sit in the first wild card spot in the west and have a 19-14-2 record. While it hasn’t been a flawless season by any means, it’s a massive step forward for the team and their hopes of playing meaningful games. This now asks the question, do the Coyotes end the season in a playoff spot? We always like to think of the best possible outcome; in this case, if the Coyotes were to make the playoffs, that would be great. However, there are multitudes of nuances we have to consider.
The first is the Coyotes’ defense. The team has struggled on that end of the ice, and struggling to defend will only result in a downhill spiral in the playoffs. It’s also worth mentioning that if they were to make the playoffs, they’d have to square off against the Colorado Avalanche or Vegas Golden Knights, which is not ideal.
Another is goaltending. Goaltending has actually been one of the Coyote’s crucial spots all season, and Karel Vejmelka and Connor Ingram have stood strong throughout the season. Despite that, they would likely have to choose one of them to take the reins as the starter. That could be problematic, as most of the time this season, one is hot, and the other is cold.
It’ll be intriguing if the Coyotes make the playoffs, but if the season ended today, they’d be right in the thick of it.
3. Is An Arena Resolution Coming Soon?
Since the team moved to Arizona from Winnipeg, finding a permanent home has been a struggle. From bouncing around to different arenas to different owners and never-ending rumors, it’s been a part of being a Coyotes fan. Adding the fact that the team has yet to see success throughout their time in Arizona doesn’t help the equation. However, Coyotes’ owner, Alex Meruelo, has a chance to solve the prolonged issue.
Per PHNX Sports, Craig Morgan writes, “Coyotes president and CEO Xavier Gutierrez told PHNX Sports on Tuesday that the team expects to announce its chosen arena site by the end of the calendar year, or shortly thereafter.”
As 2024 is just days away, we are at the end of the calendar year, and while there have been multiple reports and numerous rumors, we don’t have concrete news. Sure, hearing the team is eyeing a site is fine, but it’s nothing official, meaning the team still doesn’t have a permanent home in the Valley of the Sun.
Related: Coyotes Arena Update Answers Multitude of Questions
Coyote fans have been through it all in terms of arena news, and quite frankly, 2024 has the chance to be the start of something grand or the fall of an organization. If the team announces a plan soon, it’ll be a late Christmas present for all Coyote fans. However, after the failure of the Tempe Entertainment District, the team has little wiggle room.
While on-ice success is what most fans have their eyes on, for the majority of Coyote fans, it’ll be the update and hopeful resolution of their ongoing arena issues.
Coyotes Face Pivotal 2024 Year
Coming into 2023, countless questions were already being asked, and now, heading into 2024, we face the same situation. As noted, this team still lacks a permanent home in the desert. Will the Meruelo group be the first ownership to solve it? We’ll end up in a rabbit hole trying to answer that for now, and while we don’t have the answers to these questions yet, rest assured, we are in store for a wild ride through the ups and downs in 2024.