Antoine Vermette leads Arizona Coyotes to third straight win in defeat of Philadelphia Flyers: By the Numbers
Dec 30, 2014, 5:07 AM | Updated: 5:47 am
Devan Dubnyk and the Arizona Coyotes matched their longest winning streak of the season Monday, when they downed the visiting Philadelphia Flyers, 4-2, at Gila River Arena.
The win was the Coyotes’ third straight, giving them their 32nd point of the season, as they improved to 14-18-4.
It was also the third straight game that coach Dave Tippett started Dubnyk in net — a nod that has proven wise. The 28-year-old goalie improved to 9-3-2 on the season Monday and he’s been in net for five of the last six Coyotes’ games; four of those have ended in Arizona victories, while the one he didn’t start resulted in a 7-1 loss.
The Flyers did manage to get to Dubnyk in the third period, however, grabbing their two goals over the course of three minutes amid a flurry of shots on net.
Center Antoine Vermette, meanwhile, came away as the game’s first star, thanks to a pair of goals and an assist, becoming the team’s leading point man. Vermette’s empty-net goal with 28 seconds to play secured the Coyotes’ two-goal edge.
Here’s a look at the win, by the numbers:
8
Captain Shane Doan got the scoring started with his eighth goal of the season, which came late in the first period. Vermette and Mikkel Boedker provided the assist for the slapshot.
9
Dubnyk’s ninth win of the season was the Coyotes’ 14th and the one-time backup looks to have secured his place as Tippett’s starting net-minder for the foreseeable future following Mike Smith’s season-long struggles.
11
After 36 games, the Coyotes sit 11 points back of a potential playoff spot in the Western Conference, with 32 points. They are second-to-last in the Pacific Division and in the Western Conference at large.
25
Vermette became the Coyotes’ leader in points Monday, notching his 25th with his third period goal, after an assist and another goal. Keith Yandle, who recorded an assist Monday, previously led the team in points and now sits one back of Vermette. Boedker (21), Doan (19) and Ekman-Larsson (17) also added points in the game.
32
Dubnyk had 30 saves in Monday’s win and had a clean sheet for the first 48 minutes of the contest.
96.5
Gila River Arena was 96.5 percent full Monday, with 16,521 in attendance. The mark gave the Coyotes about 20 percent more fans than usual.
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