Arizona Coyotes announce roster ahead of season opener
Oct 2, 2018, 2:10 PM
Oliver Ekman-Larsson (23) of the Arizona Coyotes looks on with teammates during a shootout against the Los Angeles Kings at Gila River Arena on March 13, 2018 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Arizona Coyotes)
(Photo by Norm Hall/Arizona Coyotes)
The Arizona Coyotes announced Tuesday which players will be on their active roster when the season begins Thursday and they take on the Stars in Dallas.
There are 23 players on the roster, of course, but four players open the season on injured reserve: Josh Archibald, Jakob Chychrun, Alex Galenyuk and Christian Dvorak.
Chychrun skated with the Coyotes in practice on Tuesday for the first time, but needs more time practicing before he can see time in a live game. The others are still nursing their injuries, and a timetable for their respective returns has not been made immediately clear.
Here’s who made the squad to start the year:
GOALTENDERS (2)
Antti Raanta
Darcy Kuemper
DEFENSEMEN (7)
Kevin Connauton
Jason Demers
Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Alex Goligoski
Niklas Hjalmarsson
Ilya Lyubushkin
Jordan Oesterle
FORWARDS (14)
Nick Cousins
Lawson Crouse
Laurent Dauphin
Christian Fischer
Michael Grabner
Barrett Hayton
Vinnie Hinostroza
Clayton Keller
Mario Kempe
Richard Panik
Brendan Perlini
Brad Richardson
Derek Stepan
Dylan Strome
Perhaps the biggest surprise to make the roster was Hayton. It became known Monday that Hayton, the team’s first-round draft pick this year, had cracked the opening night roster. It likely helped the 18-year-old that Galcheynuk and Dvorak are injured, creating a need for players at that position.
After the Coyotes play their first game of the year on Thursday, they’ll travel back to Arizona for their home opener against the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday.
