Historical Moments:
1996/97: Though they were the first NHL team in Phoenix, hockey had been played in the valley
of the sun for over 20 years going back to the WHA's Roadrunners who played
from 1974-1977. After the WHA folded the Roadrunners became a minor league team
until the arrival of the Coyotes sent them running out of town. After splitting
their first 2 games on the road the Coyotes beat the San Jose Sharks in front
of a sold out America West Arena 4-1 in the first regular season NHL game played
in Phoenix. Led by Keith Tkachuk who would score 52 goals the Coyotes would
make the playoffs by finishing in 3rd place in the Central Division with a 38-37-7
record. In the playoffs the Coyotes fans would continue started in Winnipeg
by wearing all white to home playoff games. However the Coyotes would also continue
a Jets tradition by losing their first round series to the Mighty Ducks
of Anaheim in 7 games.
1997/98: On December 14th Mike Gartner would make history in a 5-3 win over the Maple Leafs
in Toronto by becoming just the 5th player in NHL history to score his 700th
career goal joining Wayne Gretzky, Gordie Howe, Marcel Dionne, and Phil Esposito.
With Keith Tkachuk again leading the way in goals with 40 the Coyotes would
make the playoffs by finishing in 4th place with a record of 35-35-12. However,
it would be another quick exit as they re beaten by the Detroit Red Wings in 6
games. Following the season the Coyotes milestone maker Mike Gartner would announce
his retirement ending a Hall of Fame Career, which goes back to his days
as a Cincinnati Stinger in the WHA.
1998/99: Now playing in the Pacific Division after realignment divides the NHL from 4 to 6
divisions the Coyotes send 4 players Nikolai Khabibulin, Teppo Numminen, Jeremy
Roenick, and Keith Tkachuk to the All-Star Game, on the way to finishing in 2nd
place with a solid record of 39-31-12. In the playoffs the Coyotes would continue
to play strong hockey as they jumped out to a 3-1 series lead over the St.
Louis Blues. However, the Blues would rally to win the next 3 to take the series
in 7 games. After blowing a 3-1 series lead Coach Jim Schoenfeld was chosen
as the fall guy as he was fired and replaced by Bobby Francis.
1999/00: Under new Coach the Coyotes continued to play solid hockey posting a 39-35-12-4 record
for their 5th straight playoff appearance going back to their final year
in Winnipeg. However, the Coyotes would fail to reach the 2nd round again as they
are buried by the Colorado Avalanche in 5 games. Following the season the Coyotes
would be sold to an ownership group headed by the greatest player ever to
play the game Wayne Gretzky.
2000/01: While Wayne Gretzky was trying to get the funding for his purchase it appeared as
if the Coyotes future in Phoenix could be in jeopardy, especially if they could
not get funding for a new arena. With financial troubles the Coyotes were forced
to trade away captain Keith Tkachuk to the St. Louis Blues at the trade deadline.
Without Tkachuk the Coyotes would fall just short of making the playoffs
despite posting a respectable 35-27-17-3 record. After the season the Coyotes
would lose another star in Jeremy Roenick who signs a free agent deal with the
Philadelphia Flyers. However, they would secure their future as plans to
build a new arena in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, were approved by voters.
2001/02: Despite cuts in the team's payroll the Coyotes play solid hockey all season as goalie
Sean Burke revitalizes his career with a solid 2.29 GAA posting a solid record
of 40-27-9-6, falling just 5 points short of their first division title since
joining the NHL. However, in the playoffs the Coyotes would comeback down to
earth as they are beaten by the San Jose Sharks in 5 games.
2002/03: Coming off their surprisingly strong season the Coyotes went out and landed one of
the big free agent catches of the off season in Tony Amonte. However, Amonte
would be one of the biggest free agent busts in NHL history as he only post 36
games in 59 games before he is traded to the Philadelphia Flyers for Guillaume
Lefebvre, and 2 draft picks. Making matters worse the Coyotes saw a total of 462
man games lost to injuries including Goalie Sean Burke who only appeared in 22
games. With all that loss the Coyotes would suffer their worst season since moving
to Phoenix finishing in 4th place with a 31-35-11-5 record.
2003/04: It was a year of new beginnings for the Coyotes who had new uniforms and a new den
as they began play in the Glendale Arena on December 27th. Before their new Arena
opened the Coyotes played mediocre hockey posting a 10-11-11-1 record. The
Coyotes first game in Glendale ended in disappointment as they lost to the Nashville
Predators 3-1. However a few days later goalie Brian Boucher would make
NHL history as he did not allow a goal in 5 straight games establishing a new NHL
record streak of 332:01 minutes without allowing a goal. However, after the
streak ended the Coyotes struggles resumed as they continued to skate at .500.
In February the struggles went from bad to worse as the Coyotes won just twice
leading to the firing of Coach Bobby Francis. With Rick Bowness leading the team
the rest of the season the Coyotes would go on to finish in last place with a
record of 22-36-18-6.
2004/05: Season Cancelled Due to Lock Out
2005/06: Coming out of the Lock Out the biggest buzz in Phoenix centered around the Coyotes
new coach, who was non other than "The Great One" Wayne Gretzky. In addition
to Gretzky behind the bench the Coyotes signed future Hall of Famer Brett Hull.
However, at the age of 41, and a year off Hull was a shadow of his former self
and decided to retire after just 5 games. Meanwhile the Coyotes got off to a slow
start winning just one of their first six games. The Coyotes showed signs of
improvement in November, but struggled again in December as Gretzky dealt with
the death of his mother. Things would get tougher for The Great One and the Coyotes
in the New Year, as Gretzky's name was linked to a Gambling Ring in New
Jersey. The ring would see Assistant Coach Rick Tocchet, and be forced to leave
the team, while is surfaced, that Wayne Gretzky's Wife Actress Janet Jones, was
making six figure wagers on sporting events, including the Super Bowl. Meanwhile
amidst the distractions the Coyotes continued to struggle and were never a
factor in the playoff race finishing in last place in the Pacific Division with
a record of 38-39-5.
2006/07: As the season began it was clear the Coyotes were a team looking toward the future,
as talent wise they did not measure up to many teams in the NHL. To help make
up for the gap, the Coyotes welcomed back Jeremy Roenick who starred in the early
years in the desert. They would also land defenseman Ed Jovonoski, who had
an all-star pedigree, and Owen Nolan who was making a comeback after sitting out
two years. For most of the first two months the Coyotes struggled, winning just
4 of their first 16 games. As the New Year began the Coyotes played their best
hockey winning seven straight beginning with a home and home sweep of the San
Jose Sharks. The winning streak would allow the Coyotes to climb back to .500
at 20-20-2. However, it would not last as the Coyotes would begin losing again,
with a six game losing streak in February, as they decided to trade veterans
Ladislav Nagy and Mike Comrie for prospects. However, as a consequence the Coyotes
would struggle down the stretch winning just 4 of their final 19 games, as
they finished in last place again with a terrible record of 31-46-5.
2007/08: Coming off an awful season there was no place to go, but up for the Coyotes, helping
them start the move forward was rookies Peter Mueller and Martin Hanzal who
each had a solid first year in the NHL, as the Coyotes showed some early signs
of improvement. However, still lacking to find a solid number one goalie the Coyotes
acquired Ilya Bryzgalov off waivers from the Anaheim Ducks on November 17th.
After initially struggling Bryzgalov gave the Coyotes just the spark they
needed as they had a solid road trip in which they won five of six, beating playoff
contenders like the New York Rangers, New Jersey, Devils, Philadelphia Flyers,
and San Jose Sharks. As the New Year began the Coyotes continued to play well
starting a five game winning streak on December 31st, as they climbed over
.500. The Coyotes would stay in playoff contention until March, when a five game
losing streak ended their hopes of making the postseason; However, there 38-7-7
record had to be considered a major improvement.
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