What To Expect Out of the Arizona Coyotes’ Defense
Since the 2012 postseason, the Arizona Coyotes have only been relevant in the landscape of the National Hockey League due to issues with their arena deal and the fact they changed their name from the Phoenix Coyotes. With the hire of general manager John Chayka, however, it looks as though the Coyotes could become a topic of discussion for many pundits and fans in the near future. Heavily leaning on advanced statistics paired with a handful of impressive trades, Chayka understands his young team is rebuilding and is doing nothing but helping to maximize his assets. That being said, the 2017–2018 season could be very interesting for Arizona’s hockey team, as they have swapped out key players in the forward, defenseman, and goaltending groups. With the defense group being arguably the most improved unit of the three, let’s look at what has happened to the Coyotes’ blue line this offseason.
DEPARTURES
Connor Murphy
The biggest departure on Arizona’s blue line this offseason was Connor Murphy. Along with 22-year-old Laurent Dauphin, Murphy was dealt to the Chicago Blackhawks in a deal that landed the Coyotes defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson. The 24-year-old right-handed defenseman, who registered 17 points in 77 games last season, is probably highly sought after by many hockey fans and analysts because he is 6’4” and 212 pounds with a right-handed shot, but what’s more impressive are his possession numbers. Along with posting a career-high 1.68 Corsi for relative in 2016–2017, Murphy’s -7.01 Corsi against per 60 relative (how well a team suppresses shots per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 action with a certain player on the ice compared to when they are off the ice) placed him third amongst the 96 defensemen who played 1,200 5-on-5 minutes last season behind only Anaheim’s Josh Manson (-8.55) and Nashville’s P.K. Subban (-7.26). On top of that, every defenseman on Arizona last season did better when paired with Murphy than with another Coyotes’ rearguard with the exception of Anthony DeAngelo, who played all of 2:31 with Murphy. Looking at the other defensemen Arizona lost this summer, Murphy will be the toughest one to replace.
Michael Stone
Although he only played 45 games for the Coyotes last season, Michael Stone served as an important blueliner for the club over the last few years. The 27-year-old right-handed defenseman recorded nine points in 45 games with Arizona before being dealt to the Calgary Flames in late February, where he totaled six points in 19 regular season games and one goal in four playoff games. Although Calgary Flames’ general manager Brad Treliving handed him a three-year deal worth $10.5 million in June, Stone doesn’t do a lot of things right on the ice as evidenced by his underlying numbers. Despite the fact the Coyotes finished 30th in the league with a 45.04 Corsi for percentage at 5-on-5 last year, Stone’s -5.04 Corsi for relative was the second worst amongst Coyotes’ blue liners last season behind Zbynek Michalek, a 34-year-old who played all of three games last season and will most likely retire in the upcoming months. His 43.33 Corsi for percentage was the worst among 173 d-men who played 700 or minutes at 5-on-5 last season, while his 39.41 high-danger chances for percentage was the second lowest. If this all wasn’t enough, 12 of the 13 d-men Stone played next to last year did better away from him than with him at 5-on-5. His one saving grace is his shot suppression on the penalty kill, as his 103.46 Corsi against per 60 and 20.44 high-danger chances against per 60 were the best out of any d-men who saw regular time last season on the Coyotes’ penalty kill.
Anthony DeAngelo
The former first-round pick has had his share of problems in the past, but Anthony DeAngelo wasn’t the worst player in the limited ice time he saw last season. The 21-year-old right-handed defenseman split time between the NHL and the American Hockey League last season, as he had 14 points in 39 games for the Coyotes and 16 points in 25 games for the Tucson Roadrunners, Arizona’s AHL affiliate. The 19th overall pick in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft posted a 1.54 Corsi for relative and a team-high 5.33 Corsi for per 60 relative in the first season he saw NHL action.
Zbynek Michalek and Jamie McBain
The Coyotes also lost Zbynek Michalek and Jamie McBain in the offseason, but the loss of these two shouldn’t be too much of a concern. Michalek is a 34-year-old rearguard who most took part in his final season in 2016–2017, as he went without a point in three games with the Coyotes and 14 points in 43 games with the Roadrunners. McBain is a 29-year-old right-handed shot who also went without a point in three games with the Coyotes and generated 43 points in 64 games with Tucson.
ARRIVALS
Niklas Hjalmarsson
Although he is 30 years old, the left-handed blueliner still has plenty of value and is considered one of the best defensive defensemen in the league. Hjalmarsson only had 18 points in 73 games and posted a -1.16 Corsi for relative last season, but he is a player that perennially brought up Chicago’s Corsi for percentage despite starting most of his shifts in the defensive zone. Even with his abnormally low Corsi for relative, Hjalmarsson was one of 44 defensemen who played 1,250 5-on-5 minutes or more last season to have a positive high-danger chances for percentage relative. There are concerns his playing style over the years of tough minutes against opposing team’s top players while utilizing blocked shots might be catching up to him, but for right now Hjalmarsson should be the second-best d-man on Arizona behind Oliver Ekman-Larsson.
Jason Demers
In one of the more underrated transactions of the summer, Coyotes’ general manager John Chayka convinced Florida Panthers’ general manager Dale Tallon to give him defenseman Jason Demers in a 1-for-1 deal for forward Jamie McGinn. To summarize how good of a trade this was for Arizona, Demers had what many considered a down year last season despite the fact he recorded 28 points (as a defenseman), which is more than McGinn put up in either the 2015–2016 or 2016–2017 season. The reason why many say Demers had a down year was the fact he posted a 49.09 Corsi for percentage, the second time he posted below a 50 Corsi for percentage since 2010–2011 with the only other time being the lockout-shortened season of 2013 when he finished at 48.58. If Demers returns to his normal play, which most likely will happen, the Coyotes landed a right-handed defenseman under the age of 30 years old.
Adam Clendening, Joel Hanley, Andrew Campbell
The Coyotes will also have the trio of Adam Clendening, Joel Hanley, and Andrew Campbell at their expense, but it doesn’t seem like they’ll suit up for many games. Clendening had 11 points in 31 games for the New York Rangers last season, while Hanley played in seven games for the Montreal Canadiens and Campbell served as the captain of the Toronto Marlies, the Toronto Maple Leafs’ AHL affiliate.
PROJECTED LINEUP
With so many changes to the Coyotes’ blue line, obviously the defensive pairs are going to look a little different. For starters, Ekman-Larsson will still play on the left side of Arizona’s top pairing, but this season he will most likely be joined by his countrymate Hjalmarsson. The Swedes are both left-handed, but Hjalmarsson plays on the right side and plays a game that compliments Ekman-Larsson’s very well. The two are used to difficult minutes and starting most of their shifts in their own zone, but Ekman-Larsson’s mobility and offensive upside and Hjalmarsson’s shutdown capability should gel well.
Jakob Chychrun could be paired with the recently acquired Demers on the second pairing and essentially serve as a lesser version of the top pairing. The third pairing could combine Alex Goligoski’s offensive upside with the stay-at-home approach of Luke Schenn. Although the two only played 136:36 of 5-on-5 action together last season, the duo of Goligoski and Schenn posted a 52.10 Corsi for percentage, which was 7.06 higher than Arizona’s Corsi for percentage as a team overall last year. That would leave Kevin Connauton as the team’s seventh defenseman. Connauton had an assist in 24 games with the Coyotes last season with a 1.59 relative Corsi for percentage.
CONCLUSION
With the departure of Murphy and Stone, as well as the additions of Hjalmarsson and Demers, the Arizona defense will look a little different this season. It seems likely that the duo of Hjalmarsson and Demers will have a positive impact on the overall performance of the unit, but the addition of certain forwards and the changes in net will also have an impact on this team that will make it hard to determine just how good Arizona is until the season starts. As it stands right now, it looks as though Chayka has the Coyotes moving in the right direction starting with the defensemen assembled on this year’s team.
