Arizona Coyotes vs. Montreal Canadiens preview, pick, odds: Habs to give Coyotes a rude welcome
Defenseman Kaiden Guhle likely had some fun on Monday, recording the first two points of his career after assisting on third-period goals by Suzuki and Cole Caufield. He was selected by the Canadiens with the 16th overall pick of the 2020 NHL Draft.
Kirby Dach, who scored in overtime, has known the 20-year-old Guhle for quite some time. They attended the same high school in the Edmonton area.
“Guhls is pretty good,” Dach said, per the Montreal Gazette. “I’ve skated with him for a long time. To see him progress and watch him out there and see how much fun he’s having and just really enjoying the game, it’s pretty special.”
Speaking of high draft picks, rookie Juraj Slafkovsky — the top overall selection of the 2022 NHL Draft — is slowly getting acclimated to the speed of the game and limited ice time (team-low average 10:41 per contest).
“Of course, it’s a challenge,” the 6-foot-3, 238-pound teenager said Tuesday. “I had this challenge last year in (the Finnish Elite League) at the beginning. It kept going better and better and I believe it will go better and better as well here. I will just keep fighting for my spot and I believe when I do all the small things good and we will keep winning I can get more and more ice time.”
While the Canadiens have fared well at home, the Coyotes limped out of the gate with a pair of lopsided losses to begin their season-opening six-game road trip. Arizona answered the bell on Monday, however, with a 4-2 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Coyotes play their home opener against the Winnipeg Jets at Mullett Arena in Tempe, Ariz., on Oct. 28.
“We know the perception of our team outside this rink. We’re not the traditional hockey market, and we know there’s a bunch of stuff going on with our rink, and we’re obviously in a rebuild, but we’re coming in here to play every night,” defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere said. “I told our team on our team-bonding trip. Who cares about the noise? What matters is the guys in this locker room, and we can get better every day and surprise some teams some nights.”
