Max Domi enduring the worst goal-scoring drought of his hockey life

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Max Domi has never been a Rocket Richard-level scorer. His highest goal total with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League was 39 in the 2012-13 season.

Domi has always been a pass-first player who looks to create chances for his teammates by drawing defensive attention away from his eventual passing target.

That said, Domi has never been in a scoring slump of this magnitude.

“No, never,” he said.

Since scoring in the season opener at Anaheim, the Coyotes wing has one goal in his last 27 games, a third-period, empty-net goal in a 4-1 win at Toronto on Nov. 20.

“He’s fighting it,” coach Rick Tocchet said. “We talk about him moving his feet, just going down the wing and just blasting it. Hopefully, he just gets a couple that will loosen him up.”

Domi said the important factor during this slump is not allowing it to creep into other parts of his game. He still has 13 assists to go along with those two goals and Tocchet still likes the chances he is creating, and his attention to details and defense.

“You have to find a way not to get frustrated; find a way you can help your team,” Domi said. “Just because you can’t score doesn’t mean you’re not going to help your team in other ways and work on other aspects of your game.”

Domi is seeking advice from veterans, including Derek Stepan, on how to cope with this new challenge.

“The most interesting thing people have said to me was ‘you’ve got to enjoy the process of working through a slump,'” he said. “Enjoy working on the game in the gym, mentally recovering, being a pro about not having success. If you take that approach you can still be happy when you come to work every day. As soon as you’re not doing that you have a problem but if you come to work with a smile on your face, everything will fall into place.”

The hardest adjustment for Domi may be adopting a scorer’s mentality. That was highlighted with the Coyotes trailing the Vegas Golden Knights 3-2 late in the third period on Tuesday at Gila River Arena. Domi had a 2-on-1 with Stepan, and a clear shooting path, but he elected to try a pass through traffic that was broken up. The Coyotes lost the game, 4-2.

“It’s a big problem of mine,” he said. “You don’t want to change who you are as a player but you’ve got to be selfish at some point and shoot the puck. It actually gets to the point where not shooting becomes a selfish play because shooting would be the right play for your team. Finding a way to tap into that and being conscious of shooting the puck is something I have to learn.”

The numbers say he is trying. Through 28 games, Domi has 71 shots on goal, an average of 2.54 per game. In his rookie season when he scored 18 goals in 81 games, he averaged 1.93. Last season, when he scored nine goals in an injury-shortened, 59-game season, he averaged 1.83.

“I don’t think I’ve ever created this many shots,” said Domi, whose shot total is the fourth highest on the team behind Clayton Keller, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Stepan. “Still, in the Vegas game, we’re down 3-2, I’ve got to shoot that puck instead of trying to sauce it to Steps. That’s just a natural habit to want to make that pass. It’s not the end of the world, but getting pucks on net is not something I have done a lot of in my career and I’m just trying to tap into that a little bit.

“In practice I’ve started start working on it by shooting on 2-on-1s. I don’t think I’ve ever shot on a 2-on-1 in my life but if the goalie knows you’re going to pass and the defense knows you’re going to pass, it’s a lot harder for the guy shooting it to score and it’s a lot easier for the D and the goalie to read that. You’ve got to have that deception and that tool in your back pocket.”

Domi insists the lack of production is not frustrating him.

“It’s a good learning curve and everyone goes through this at some point in their career,” he said. “The percentages say that if you keep shooting the puck they’re going to eventually go in and you just have to trust that. I’m sure I’ll get out of it at some point and once I do, I’ll be doing the same thing again this year or next year. That’s just part of the game.”

Devils at Coyotes
When: 6 p.m., Saturday
Where: Gila River Arena, Glendale
TV: FOX Sports Arizona
Radio: ESPN 620 AM
Records: Coyotes — 6-18-4. Devils — 15-6-4.

Injury report: Coyotes — D Jakob Chychrun (knee) is week to week. D Niklas Hjalmarsson (upper body) and G Antti Raanta (upper body) are day to day. Devils — D Mirco Mueller (collarbone) and F Kyle Palmieri (broken right foot) are out indefinitely. F Marcus Johansson, who missed 13 games after suffering a concussion at Vancouver on Nov. 1, returned to the lineup Friday in Denver against the Avalanche.

Devils scouting report: The Devils made a blockbuster trade Thursday, sending forwards Adam Henrique, Joseph Blandisi and a third-round pick in 2018 to Anaheim for D Sami Vatanen and a conditional third-round pick. Vatanen was in the lineup Friday in Denver against the Avalanche… F Taylor Hall leads the Devils with 19 assists and 27 points. F Brian Gibbons leads the team with 11 goals. … Hall has 12 goals and 27 points in 25 career games against the Coyotes.

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