Imagining What an Outdoor Game Could Look Like & Julian Lutz Becoming a Top-Tier Prospect
Welcome to the THW Arizona Coyotes Substack newsletter, with all the latest from our team of Coyotes writers.
In today’s edition, we have Potential options for a Coyotes outdoor game, McBain making the most of opportunity, Cooley & Slafkovsky squaring off for the first time, and Julian Lutz improving rapidly.
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Imagining a Potential Arizona Coyotes Outdoor Game
November 3, 2023 by Chase Beardsley
Most people say it can never be done, but there is a real possibility that the Arizona Coyotes could host an outdoor game. We’ve seen outdoor games in Dallas, Nashville, and Raleigh, all places many say it shouldn’t work. So, with the Coyotes only one of three NHL teams never to appear in an outdoor game (Florida Panthers and Columbus Blue Jackets are the other two), I wanted to take a look at what we could see with a potential outdoor game in the Grand Canyon state.
Mountain America Credit Union Stadium: Also referred to as Sun Devil Stadium, the historic football venue located on Arizona State’s campus in downtown Tempe is the most likely place to host an outdoor game. The stadium was built 65 years ago on the side of a mountain and has been in use ever since. It has been renovated multiple times, most recently in 2019.
Coyotes’ McBain Making the Most of an Opportunity
November 3, 2023 by Richard Jelinek
Arizona Coyotes forward Jack McBain came to the organization as a rather unknown. Drafted by the Minnesota Wild 63rd overall in the 2018 NHL Draft, he was a scoring threat throughout college and had some promise as a young point producer. Then things changed, and he was given a new life thanks to a trade by the Coyotes.
The 6-foot-3 and 201-pound McBain was a prominent point producer while playing for the Boston College Eagles of the NCAA. For four years, he was the best player on his team and started to get recognition as a player who could go high in the upcoming NHL Draft. He did not go in the first round, but he made a name for himself in college, allowing him to go late in the second round.
Coyotes’ Cooley & Canadiens’ Slafkovsky Square Off For First Time
November 2, 2023 by Cooper Krigbaum
Expect the unexpected. This is the phrase Arizona Coyotes general manager Bill Armstrong has typified since he arrived in the desert. From shocking signings, trades, hirings, or draft selections, he always pulls a rabbit out of his hat – or suit. He wasn’t afraid to draft two Russian prospects at the 2023 NHL Draft, Dmitri Simashev and Daniil But. However, what stood out the most was when he drafted Logan Cooley third overall in 2022.
Cooley has played nine NHL games and, so far, he’s lived up to the hype. On Thursday (Nov. 2), he’ll go toe-to-toe with Juraj Slafkovsky, who went first overall in the 2022 Draft. With Shane Wright still on the board, it was a shocker that the Montreal Canadiens selected Slafkovsky. That said, the Coyotes also passed on Wright. With both facing off for the first time at Mullett Arena, how did both get to the NHL and how have they fared to begin their young careers?
Coyotes’ Lutz Recovers to Become Top-Tier Prospect
November 1, 2023 by Richard Jelinek
Germany is known for many things, like picturesque lakes, the Nobel Prize, recycling efficiency, having the highest rate of entrepreneurship per capita in Europe, and hockey. From goaltender Olaf Kolzig and forward Marco Sturm to defenseman Moritz Seider and forward Leon Draisaitl, Germany has had many successful players make it to the NHL. Other players who did not make it to the NHL have had successful careers in the minors, like goaltender Dimitri Patzold and defenseman Konrad Abeltshauser.
At present, Germany is represented again by Arizona Coyotes prospect Julian Lutz. Lutz was drafted 43rd overall in the 2022 NHL Draft by Arizona and becomes the latest forward in a rising forward prospect group list. The 6-foot-2 and 187-pound left-winger from Weingarten, Germany, is still green but a prospect worth watching as he makes strides to make the Coyotes roster.