STATS
Dylan Guenther scored his first NHL goal and Clayton Keller added his second of the season, but the Coyotes ultimately dropped a 6-2 contest to the Ottawa Senators on Saturday afternoon at the Canadian Tire Centre.
Karel Vejmelka made 26 saves for the Coyotes (1-4-0), who have one road game remaining before returning to Arizona for their home opener on Friday.
Shane Pinto, Josh Norris, Brady Tkachuk, Mark Kastelic, and Tyler Motte scored for the Senators, who improved to 3-2-0 on the season. Anton Forsberg stopped 20 of the 22 shots he faced.
Pinto and Norris scored less than two minutes apart in the first period to give the Senators an early 2-0 lead, but the Coyotes answered early in an action-packed second, in which three goals were scored in a span of 2:07.
Guenther’s first NHL goal came on the power play after he corralled a pass from Matias Maccelli in front of the net before wristing it up and over Forsberg’s glove. The 19-year-old rookie was buzzing all game, and had multiple scoring chances.
“That was a goal-scorer’s goal,” Coyotes head coach André Tourigny said. “He found a hole, and found a breakaway as well in the third, so he could have had two.”
Guenther now has two points in four NHL games, and said afterwards how much he appreciates the club’s veterans welcoming the young players to the roster. Forward Lawson Crousewho collected the puck from the back of the net after Guenther scored, recently took a number of the team’s newest faces to dinner in an effort to help them feel more at home.
That meant the world to the rookie forward.
“It starts from the top — just the leaders of the team, when they’re so welcoming, and they want to be around you, and want to get to know you,” Guenther said. “I think that allows me and the other young guys to get more comfortable, and ultimately when you’re comfortable, you’re going to play better out there.”
His teammates were elated after Guenther’s power-play tally.
“They were super stoked,” he said. “I think it’s pretty cool when they’re as excited as you are.”
The goal cut Arizona’s deficit to one, although Tkachuk restored Ottawa’s two-goal lead after he redirected Drake Batherson’s shot-pass to the left of Vejmelka, also while on the power play.
Keller was credited with his second goal of the season after his pass deflected off two skates and snuck behind Forsberg just 22 seconds after Tkachuk had restored Ottawa’s lead to two.
“What I liked, I didn’t feel any change, all the way through the game, I think the guys stayed focused, they stayed together, they battled hard,” Tourighy said. “I think it’s a step in the right direction for us in terms of attitude, effort, commitment, and focus.
“Obviously we need to clean up a few things defensively, but if the attitude stays like that, and the effort stays like that, there’s brighter days ahead.”
Kastelic restored Ottawa’s two-goal lead at 6:15 of the third period after he snuck a backhand shot through Vejmelka, and Motte extended Ottawa’s lead to 5-2 less than a minute later after he poked home a rebound. Tkachuk rounded out the scoring with his second of the game, on a breakaway, at 12:08 of the third period.
The Coyotes conclude their season-opening road trip in Columbus on Tuesday, and the game will be broadcast on Bally Sports Arizona (TV) and ESPN 620 AM (Radio). Puck drop is scheduled for 4 pm MST.
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