Dylan Guenther scored during overtime at 4:12, giving the Arizona Coyotes a 2-1 win against Seattle on Friday night, marking the Kraken’s seventh loss in a row. Guenther shot the puck past former Arizona State goalie Joey Daccord’s glove. Guenther, who is 20 years old, has scored 11 goals in 33 games since joining the team from the minor leagues.
“Certainly, he brings a lot to the game — competitiveness, speed, skill,” said Coyotes coach Andre Tourigny. “He’s strong defensively and has a good stick. He’s eager to win and has that determination in his eyes.”
Clayton Keller tied the game for Arizona with just 1:08 remaining in regulation with his 29th goal. He put in the rebound from a shot by Nick Bjugstad during a 3-on-3 break. “We made mistakes that cost us the tying goal,” said Seattle coach Dave Hakstol. “We mishandled the three-on-three. We certainly would have liked to handle that differently.”
Karel Vejmelka made 27 saves for the Coyotes in the first of seven consecutive home games. The Coyotes have won two of their last four games but have lost 19 out of 25.
“It was a different game than usual,” Vejmelka said. “We waited a long time for a goal. We had a great comeback. The guys in front of me did a fantastic job. They blocked a lot of shots again.”
Kraken rookie Ryker Evans scored his first NHL goal to break the scoreless tie at 7:40 of the third period, beating Vejmelka with a wrist shot from a tough angle in the left circle. Evans had seven assists in his previous 23 games.
“It took a little while, but it felt good to score the first one,” Evans said. “It was pretty exciting. Hopefully, I can keep building confidence and continue to play well.”
The Kraken, who rank 29th in the NHL in scoring, have only scored 10 goals in their last seven games. They allowed two goals in the final 1:20 in a 3-1 loss against Vegas on Thursday night. Seattle only managed one shot on their three power-play opportunities, after scoring a power-play goal in each of their previous four games.
“We lacked energy,” Hakstol said. “Simply put, we were in a great position to win this hockey game. It’s a game we should have been able to finish.” Daccord made 19 saves at the 4,400-seat Mullett Arena on the Arizona State campus. Daccord played for the Sun Devils before the Mullett Arena opened.
Arizona forward Michael Carcone appeared to score the tying goal midway through the third period, but the goal was disallowed after a video review showed that Carcone kicked the puck into the net from right in front. “We want to focus on playing games like these, staying in the game, showing resilience,” Tourigny said.
Tourigny stated that the Coyotes plan to rotate Vejmelka and Connor Ingram in goal for the remainder of the season. “I see a goalie who is competing hard, who is agile in the net, who is making crucial saves, and who gives us a chance every night,” Tourigny said about Vejmelka. “He has that determination.”
