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ARIZONA COYOTES

Despite Raanta’s exit, Coyotes rally in third period to beat Wild

The Arizona Coyotes saw starting goaltender Antti Raanta exit the game after two periods and proceeded to score three straight goals to beat the Wild.

Arizona Coyotes' Lawson Crouse, left, is congratulated by teammates after his goal against the Minn...

Arizona Coyotes' Lawson Crouse, left, is congratulated by teammates after his goal against the Minnesota Wild during the first period of an NHL hockey game Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2018, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

(AP Photo/Jim Mone)

The Arizona Coyotes have to be worried about the status of starting goaltender Antti Raanta.

Raanta missed eight games in November due to an undisclosed lower-body injury and proceeded to give up 11 total goals in his first two starts back.

On Monday at practice, head coach Rick Tocchet implied that the trainers were looking at something with Raanta and said it would be a day-to-day matter.

That matter appeared to come up for Raanta in Tuesday’s 4-3 win over the Minnesota Wild, as he exited during the second intermission due to a lower-body injury. It is not known whether or not it is the same injury that caused Raanta to miss eight games.

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Adin Hill replaced Raanta, and after the goaltender exited with a 3-1 deficit, the Coyotes got on a roll.

Fourth-liner Josh Archibald got the scoring started with a snipe from the slot off a Wild turnover forced by Lawson Crouse, the lone goal scorer for the Coyotes in the first period.

Another great forecheck by the Coyotes brought on the next goal. Brad Richardson’s work in the corner got Michael Grabner the puck in front of the net and he slotted it home to tie the game less than five minutes later.

In 97 seconds, Archibald once again found space in the slot on a semi-breakaway and buried the chance to give the Coyotes a stunning 4-3 lead through three goals in 5:29 of game time.

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In nine games, Archibald entered Tuesday night pointless and he left Minnesota with two goals and an assist.

The win for the Coyotes snapped a four-game losing streak.

Kellan Olson Suns reporter and co-host of Arizona Sports at Night

Kellan Olson is ArizonaSports.com's beat writer for the Phoenix Suns and a co-host of the Empire of the Suns podcast, as well as the intermittent night show Arizona Sports at Night. You'll also catch him covering other teams and frequently filling in… Read more

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