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Curtis Zupke grew up in Los Angeles and got hooked on hockey (along with thousands of other Southern Californians) upon Wayne Gretzky’s arrival to the Kings in 1988. He covered the Anaheim Ducks for the Orange County (Calif.) Register from 2006 to 2011.
His work has also appeared in The Hockey News, Associated Press and QMI Agency (a Quebec-based wire service that serves 250 daily and weekly newspapers in Canada).
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| Unlikely heroes lead Coyotes to six straight wins |
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| Pacific | |
| Written by J.P. Hoornstra | |
| Tuesday, November 23, 2010 00:00 | |
The Coyotes' surge is a faceless one. Even team captain Shane Doan was shelved for seven straight games, during which the team is unbeaten in regulation. The new-hero-every-night approach is working.
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To quote a popular country tune, six-game winning streaks are getting passed around like a bottle of crown in the Pacific Division. First it was the Ducks, then the Kings, and currently the Coyotes are riding a half-dozen straight wins to the league’s longest winning streak. Streaks are inherently impermanent creatures, but all Phoenix has to do to make it seven is beat the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday.| AROUND THE PACIFIC |
Goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov, the team’s Vezina Trophy finalist from a year ago, has received ample goal support throughout the streak. The most clutch goaltending performance of the six games arguably came from backup Jason LaBarbera, who made 35 saves in Chicago in a 2-1 Coyotes win that kick-started the streak on Nov. 10.
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Two nights later, Bryzgalov was excused from culpability in allowing four goals to the Calgary Flames when Vernon Fiddler notched the first hat trick of his career. Ray Whitney turned a hat trick against the St. Louis Blues the very next night.Bryzgalov needed 39 saves to beat Calgary again, 3-1 on Nov. 17, and Eric Belanger (a late summer signee) scored the winning shootout goal Friday in a 4-3 win over the Oilers.
After Taylor Pyatt’s two-goal night dispatched the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday, head coach Dave Tippett said, “the one thing I like is we've got everybody contributing. Every night, it seems like there's a different guy that steps up and plays well, or a different line. Our goaltending has been solid through it, but for the most part it's been a solid team effort.”
More good news arrived Sunday when captain Shane Doan returned after missing seven games with an undisclosed lower-body injury. Doan has done his best leading off the ice this season, with just a goal and two assists in 10 games. On the ice, the ‘Yotes are actually 6-0-4 without Doan this season, which may have led the ever-diplomatic captain to delay his return.
“The team’s playing so well you want to keep everybody happy, keep going the same way,” he said. “It’s a very tough decision.”
The 38-year-old Whitney is leading the team in scoring with 14 points (three goals, 11 assists). Only four players – Radim Vrbata, Lauri Korpikoski, Lee Stempniak and Scottie Upshall – are on pace for 20-goal seasons.
As long as the new-hero-every-night-approach works, nobody’s counting.
Notes
Coyotes forward Kyle Turris missed the Vancouver game after receiving stitches to the bridge of his nose following a hit to the head by the Oilers’ Andrew Cogliano on Friday. … The Ducks traded a pair of AHLers, defenseman Danny Syvret and forward Rob Bordson, to the Philadelphia Flyers for forwards Patrick Maroon and David Laliberte on Sunday. … Later that day, Anaheim lost its fifth straight game, 4-2 to the Edmonton Oilers. ... The Kings lost their fourth game in five days, 3-2 in Ottawa on Monday, on a pair of disputed goals. … The Sharks are 1-1-2 without D Douglas Murray, who suffered a lower-body injury blocking a shot against Calgary Nov. 13.Photos by Getty Images
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