{coyotes} NHL Standings as of Sunday, April 01, 2012 1:16 AM.

 

as of Sunday, April 01, 2012 1:16 AM.

Eastern
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	ROW	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	x-NY Rangers	78	50	21	7	46	107	217	173	27-10-2	23-11-5	7-3-0	Won 4
2	x-Boston	78	46	28	4	38	96	257	192	23-13-3	23-15-1	6-3-1	Won 1
3	Florida	78	37	25	16	31	90	192	215	20-9-10	17-16-6	5-2-3	Lost 1
4	x-Pittsburgh	78	48	24	6	39	102	264	208	27-9-2	21-15-4	6-3-1	Won 1
5	x-Philadelphia	78	45	24	9	41	99	251	218	21-12-6	24-12-3	6-2-2	OT 1
6	x-New Jersey	79	45	28	6	33	96	219	205	22-13-4	23-15-2	5-4-1	Won 3
7	Ottawa	78	40	28	10	34	90	240	230	20-15-4	20-13-6	5-3-2	Won 3
8	Washington	79	40	31	8	36	88	212	223	25-11-4	15-20-4	5-3-2	Won 2
9	Buffalo	79	38	31	10	31	86	208	219	20-12-8	18-19-2	6-2-2	Lost 2
10	Winnipeg	79	36	34	9	32	81	213	233	23-13-4	13-21-5	4-5-1	OT 1
11	Tampa Bay	78	36	35	7	33	79	223	268	24-14-2	12-21-5	5-5-0	Won 1
12	Carolina	79	31	32	16	31	78	208	237	19-14-7	12-18-9	5-4-1	Lost 1
13	NY Islanders	78	33	34	11	26	77	193	236	16-17-6	17-17-5	5-3-2	Lost 1
14	Toronto	79	34	36	9	30	77	222	252	17-16-7	17-20-2	4-5-1	Won 1
15	Montreal	79	29	35	15	24	73	202	221	14-15-10	15-20-5	2-3-5	OT 1
Western
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	ROW	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	y-Vancouver	79	49	21	9	42	107	239	191	25-10-4	24-11-5	7-2-1	Won 6
2	x-St. Louis	79	48	21	10	44	106	204	156	30-5-4	18-16-6	4-3-3	Lost 1
3	Los Angeles	79	39	27	13	33	91	185	170	21-14-4	18-13-9	7-2-1	OT 1
4	x-Nashville	79	45	26	8	41	98	227	208	24-10-5	21-16-3	4-5-1	Lost 1
5	x-Detroit	78	46	27	5	39	97	240	195	30-6-2	16-21-3	2-6-2	Lost 2
6	x-Chicago	79	44	26	9	38	97	240	229	27-8-5	17-18-4	7-1-2	Won 2
7	Phoenix	79	39	27	13	33	91	206	202	21-13-6	18-14-7	5-2-3	Won 2
8	San Jose	79	40	29	10	32	90	214	201	25-12-3	15-17-7	6-4-0	Won 1
9	Dallas	79	42	32	5	35	89	207	212	22-14-3	20-18-2	4-6-0	Lost 2
10	Colorado	80	41	33	6	32	88	205	209	22-15-2	19-18-4	5-3-2	Won 1
11	Calgary	80	35	29	16	32	86	194	222	21-12-6	14-17-10	2-4-4	OT 1
12	Anaheim	78	33	34	11	30	77	194	217	21-17-2	12-17-9	4-5-1	Lost 1
13	Minnesota	78	33	35	10	24	76	168	215	19-16-4	14-19-6	4-6-0	Won 2
14	Edmonton	78	31	38	9	26	71	208	230	18-17-5	13-21-4	5-3-2	Lost 2
15	Columbus	79	27	45	7	23	61	190	255	16-21-3	11-24-4	5-5-0	Won 3

Standings Legend:

GP - games played
W - wins
L - losses
OT - overtime losses
ROW - regulation + overtime wins
PTS - points
GF - goals for
GA - goals against
Home - home record
Away - away record
Last 10 - record of last 10 games
Streak - win/loss streak*
x - clinched playoff berth
y - clinched division title
z - presidents trophy

* Number of consecutive wins, regulation losses, or OT/SO losses

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{coyotes} Smith, Whitney lead Coyotes' 4-0 rout of Anaheim

 

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP)—Mike Smith had 44 saves in his second straight shutout and Ray Whitney passed 1,000 career points with a goal and assist in the Phoenix Coyotes' 4-0 rout of the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday night.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Antoine Vermette and Radim Vrbata also scored for the Coyotes, who with three games to play are tied with Pacific Division-leading Los Angeles in points with 91 but the Kings own the tiebreaker.

Three of Phoenix's goals came on power plays, all in the second period, for a team that ranks last in the NHL in that category.

Whitney's assist on Vrbata's goal made him the 79th player in NHL history to reach 1,000 points. Forty seconds later, Whitney scored his 24th goal of the season.

Jeff Deslauriers, in his third start of the season for Anaheim, had 29 saves.

The Coyotes killed six penalties.

Smith, honored as the team's MVP before the game, earned his seventh shutout of the season, fourth-best in the NHL.

Smith, who had 15 first-period saves—38 overall—in Phoenix's 2-0 win over San Jose two nights earlier, was even better against the Ducks, stopping 21 shots as Anaheim outshot the Coyotes 21-7 in the opening period.

But Phoenix led, thanks to Ekman-Larsson's timely exit from the penalty box. The Coyotes had just killed the penalty when, after a faceoff at the Phoenix end, Mikkel Boedker got the puck and passed it to Ekman-Larsson. The 20-year-old defenseman broke free and tapped a backhander past Deslauriers, giving the Coyotes a 1-0 lead with 13:50 left in the period.

The goal came 7 seconds after the first of Phoenix's two first-period penalty kills. The Coyotes killed another penalty in the second period, then scored on a power play to go up 2-0.

With Anaheim's Saku Koivu in the penalty box for tripping, Vermette deflected Derek Morris' slap shot into the net with 8:57 left in the period.

The Coyotes made it a rout after the Ducks' Corey Perry locked up with Gilbert Brule in a fight. Perry got an extra 2 minutes for instigating the fisticuffs. Anaheim had 21 seconds left in a penalty for having too many men on the ice, giving Phoenix a two-man advantage. Sixteen seconds later, Vrbata scored his team-high 33rd goal on an assist from Whitney to make it 3-0.

Whitney, a 39-year-old left wing in his 19th NHL season, drew a standing ovation from the crowd. When play resumed, with Phoenix's advantage down to one man, Whitney quickly scored and it was 4-0 with 3:06 left in the second period.

Phoenix has three games to play, beginning with their final regular-season home game Tuesday night against Columbus. They finish the season at St. Louis and Minnesota.

Notes: Whitney has 47 points in 45 career games against Anaheim. … The Ducks had beaten Phoenix three times in a row entering Saturday night's game. … Deslauriers was recalled from Syracuse of the AHL on Feb. 14. He won his two earlier starts for the Ducks this season. … Phoenix, statistically the worst power-play team in the league, has scored on four in the past two games.

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{coyotes} NHL Standings as of Saturday, March 31, 2012 12:46 AM.

as of Saturday, March 31, 2012 12:46 AM.

Eastern
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	ROW	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	x-NY Rangers	78	50	21	7	46	107	217	173	27-10-2	23-11-5	7-3-0	Won 4
2	x-Boston	77	45	28	4	37	94	251	189	23-13-3	22-15-1	5-4-1	OT 1
3	Florida	78	37	25	16	31	90	192	215	20-9-10	17-16-6	5-2-3	Lost 1
4	x-Pittsburgh	78	48	24	6	39	102	264	208	27-9-2	21-15-4	6-3-1	Won 1
5	x-Philadelphia	77	45	24	8	41	98	248	214	21-12-5	24-12-3	6-3-1	Won 1
6	New Jersey	78	44	28	6	32	94	214	205	22-13-4	22-15-2	5-4-1	Won 2
7	Ottawa	77	39	28	10	34	88	236	227	20-15-4	19-13-6	5-3-2	Won 2
8	Washington	78	39	31	8	36	86	209	221	24-11-4	15-20-4	5-3-2	Won 1
9	Buffalo	78	38	30	10	31	86	205	215	20-12-8	18-18-2	7-1-2	Lost 1
10	Winnipeg	78	36	34	8	32	80	211	230	23-13-4	13-21-4	4-6-0	Won 1
11	Carolina	78	31	31	16	31	78	208	232	19-13-7	12-18-9	5-4-1	OT 1
12	Tampa Bay	77	35	35	7	32	77	220	266	23-14-2	12-21-5	4-6-0	Lost 2
13	NY Islanders	77	33	33	11	26	77	190	230	16-16-6	17-17-5	5-3-2	Won 3
14	Toronto	78	33	36	9	29	75	218	249	16-16-7	17-20-2	3-6-1	Lost 2
15	Montreal	78	29	35	14	24	72	200	218	14-15-10	15-20-4	3-3-4	Lost 1
Western
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	ROW	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	x-St. Louis	78	48	20	10	44	106	202	151	30-4-4	18-16-6	5-2-3	OT 1
2	y-Vancouver	78	48	21	9	41	105	236	189	24-10-4	24-11-5	6-3-1	Won 5
3	Los Angeles	78	39	27	12	33	90	182	166	21-14-4	18-13-8	8-2-0	Won 2
4	x-Nashville	78	45	25	8	41	98	223	203	24-9-5	21-16-3	5-4-1	Won 1
5	x-Detroit	78	46	27	5	39	97	240	195	30-6-2	16-21-3	2-6-2	Lost 2
6	Chicago	78	43	26	9	37	95	235	225	27-8-5	16-18-4	7-1-2	Won 1
7	Dallas	78	42	31	5	35	89	207	209	22-14-3	20-17-2	5-5-0	Lost 1
8	Phoenix	78	38	27	13	32	89	202	202	20-13-6	18-14-7	5-2-3	Won 1
9	San Jose	78	39	29	10	31	88	211	201	24-12-3	15-17-7	5-4-1	Lost 2
10	Colorado	80	41	33	6	32	88	205	209	22-15-2	19-18-4	5-3-2	Won 1
11	Calgary	79	35	29	15	32	85	192	219	21-12-6	14-17-9	3-4-3	Lost 2
12	Anaheim	77	33	33	11	30	77	194	213	21-17-2	12-16-9	4-5-1	Won 1
13	Minnesota	77	32	35	10	24	74	164	212	18-16-4	14-19-6	4-6-0	Won 1
14	Edmonton	78	31	38	9	26	71	208	230	18-17-5	13-21-4	5-3-2	Lost 2
15	Columbus	78	26	45	7	22	59	185	253	16-21-3	10-24-4	4-6-0	Won 2

Standings Legend:

GP - games played
W - wins
L - losses
OT - overtime losses
ROW - regulation + overtime wins
PTS - points
GF - goals for
GA - goals against
Home - home record
Away - away record
Last 10 - record of last 10 games
Streak - win/loss streak*
x - clinched playoff berth
y - clinched division title
z - presidents trophy

* Number of consecutive wins, regulation losses, or OT/SO losses

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{coyotes} Anaheim (33-33-11) at Phoenix (38-27-13)

Anaheim (33-33-11) at Phoenix (38-27-13)

• TV: KDOC, FSAZ

• Puck Drop: 9:00 pm EDT Sat Mar 31, 2012

The Phoenix Coyotes are locked in a four-team race for the Pacific Division title. To pick up two more valuable points, they'll have to avoid a fourth consecutive lopsided loss to their next opponent.

The Anaheim Ducks have earned three straight decisive victories over Phoenix, which will be trying to win back-to-back games for the first time in more than a month Saturday night at Jobing.com Arena.

In a tight battle with Dallas, Los Angeles and San Jose for the division crown and the third seed in the Western Conference, the Coyotes (38-27-13) earned a critical victory Thursday by beating the Sharks 2-0.

Phoenix avoided a third straight defeat and earned at least a point for the ninth time in 11 games as it continued its push for a third consecutive postseason appearance.

"It's got to be a momentum game for us that makes us hungrier for that next game," said coach Dave Tippett, whose team last won two straight during a season-best six-game run Feb. 16-28. "We're going to have to play well the last four games to get ourselves in."

More solid performances in net from Mike Smith could make that happen. The veteran recorded his sixth shutout and 34th victory with 38 saves Thursday.

"Smitty finds a way to win - that's what he's done for us all year," Tippett said.

That was true in the first two meetings with Anaheim in 2011-12, as Smith turned aside 48 of 54 shots. However, he was also in goal for the last three matchups as the Ducks outscored the Coyotes 14-4.

Andrew Cogliano recorded a hat trick in the most recent one, a 4-1 Anaheim road win Jan. 31.

Another victory would give the Ducks (33-33-11) their first season series win over Phoenix since 2008-09, although they may not be nearly as motivated this time around. Anaheim, loser of five of six on the road, was eliminated from postseason contention Wednesday.

It can still have an impact on the West playoff picture, as the club also has contests against Vancouver and Calgary remaining.

"These games we are just trying to finish strong and see what happens," veteran forward Teemu Selanne said. "… It's a tough situation. But we are playing well."

Anaheim has won three of four and gone 23-11-5 in its last 39.

Jonas Hiller has posted a 1.97 goals-against average while starting 37 of those, and he should be in net on Saturday after stopping 28 shots against San Jose in his team-record 70th start.

Hiller, one win shy of reaching 30 for the second time, was in net for the last three games against Phoenix and posted a 1.33 GAA.

Coyotes forward Radim Vrbata could prove to be an obstacle to Hiller reaching that milestone. After missing two games due to an allergic reaction to penicillin, Vrbata netted his 31st and 32nd goals Thursday. His 33rd would give him the franchise's highest total since Nelson Emerson had that many for the Winnipeg Jets in 1993-94.

Ray Whitney, who assisted on both of Vrbata's goals against San Jose, needs one point to reach 1,000. He has three goals and nine assists during a 10-game point streak in this series.

The Ducks' last four-game winning streak against Phoenix was Jan. 4-March 22, 2009.

Team Comparison

Team	G	W	L	OTL	Pts	Standings	GF	GA	Road/Home
Anaheim	77	33	33	11	77	5th, Pacific	194	213	12-16-9 Road
Phoenix	78	38	27	13	89	2nd, Pacific	202	202	20-13-6 Home

Injuries

Dan Ellis G

Kurt Sauer D

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{coyotes} Frustrating month for Vrbata takes positive turn

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- March just hasn't been Radim Vrbata's month.

First a scoring slump set in right after his career-high 30th goal. That was followed by a nasty, persistent head cold that was stubbornly resistant to over-the-counter medication, forcing him to turn to antibiotics for help.

And then, on the ninth day of a strong, 10-day round of penicillin treatments with his body already full of the medication, Vrbata began to suffer an allergic reaction. It has lasted for more than two weeks, starting with a nasty rash that spread over his body, making sweating and wearing hockey equipment the absolute worst thing he could do.

And then, it got worse.

Joint pain set in. Swelling. Severe cramping that shifted locations daily.

"It's like a constant cramp all over your body," Vrbata said. "Your fist or your shoulder hurts, or your groin. It's incredibly frustrating. It would feel good one day ... the next you wake up with so much pain, and you don't know where it came from or how to get rid of it."

The Coyotes got captain Shane Doan back from suspension for Thursday's showdown with the Sharks. Defenseman Adrian Aucoin returned from a lower-body injury. But the pregame questions centered around the status of Vrbata, who had 30 goals in the first 60 games of the season and is a critical part of the Phoenix offense.

At Thursday's morning skate, Vrbata's muscles were so tight he couldn't squeeze his stick with his fingers. But with the biggest game of the season looming against San Jose and Phoenix in dire need of a win to keep control of its own playoff destiny, Vrbata said he wanted to try it.

The Coyotes are glad he did. Vrbata scored his first goal since Feb. 21 on a second-period power play, added another on a two-on-one rush in the third period and gave Phoenix goalie Mike Smith all the offense he would need in a 2-0 shutout of the Sharks, allowing Phoenix to reclaim a spot among the top eight in the skin-tight Western Conference with four games left to play.

Both goals came on assist passes from Ray Whitney, the 998th and 999th points of his career, with the line of Vrbata, Whitney and Martin Hanzal reunited for the key game. That allowed the Coyotes to bolster the other lines and match the energy of the Sharks after a lackluster first period.

"We really need him, and it's good to see him get back on the scoreboard," Phoenix coach Dave Tippett said. "The last couple of weeks have been a real struggle for him. The medicine is playing havoc with his body. He's going through something that's hard to explain or describe."

Vrbata had missed five of the last seven games as his teammates scratched and clawed down the stretch, unable to help as they lost four out of six games, two of which included shootouts where he could have made a difference. He played twice during that span, but the rash and the joint pain was so intense in Edmonton on March 18 that he left in the second period.

The Coyotes' medical staff feels they have a handle on the problem. But even now, after his big game against the Sharks, the joint pain was returning in the dressing room, making Friday's practice and Saturday's game against Anaheim, another must-win for Phoenix, a mystery.

The Coyotes have four games left. And while Dallas, Los Angeles and San Jose will be beating on each other -- each team plays the other twice beginning Saturday -- the Coyotes must handle spoilers like Anaheim, Columbus and Minnesota and earn their way into the postseason for the third straight year.

Vrbata hopes he's on the ice contributing from here on out. But he knows might not be done suffering.

"I hope I wake up tomorrow up feeling fine. If it's good enough to go I will play," Vrbata said after Thursday's game, as the cramping set back in. "I was glad I could play and help tonight, it has been frustrating to watch everyone work so hard and you want to be doing your part.

"We are doing everything we to get it (flushed) out of my system. Right now, I'm feeling like (Friday) might not be so good.  I will do everything possible, but I know I'm not over this. It's still there."

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Read More :- "{coyotes} Frustrating month for Vrbata takes positive turn"

{coyotes} NHL Standings as of Friday, March 30, 2012 1:01 AM.

 

as of Friday, March 30, 2012 1:01 AM.

Eastern
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	ROW	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	x-NY Rangers	77	49	21	7	45	105	213	172	26-10-2	23-11-5	7-3-0	Won 3
2	Boston	77	45	28	4	37	94	251	189	23-13-3	22-15-1	5-4-1	OT 1
3	Florida	77	37	24	16	31	90	191	211	20-9-10	17-15-6	6-1-3	OT 1
4	x-Pittsburgh	77	47	24	6	38	100	259	205	27-9-2	20-15-4	6-3-1	Lost 2
5	x-Philadelphia	77	45	24	8	41	98	248	214	21-12-5	24-12-3	6-3-1	Won 1
6	New Jersey	78	44	28	6	32	94	214	205	22-13-4	22-15-2	5-4-1	Won 2
7	Ottawa	77	39	28	10	34	88	236	227	20-15-4	19-13-6	5-3-2	Won 2
8	Buffalo	77	38	29	10	31	86	202	210	20-11-8	18-18-2	7-1-2	Won 5
9	Washington	78	39	31	8	36	86	209	221	24-11-4	15-20-4	5-3-2	Won 1
10	Winnipeg	77	35	34	8	31	78	207	227	23-13-4	12-21-4	3-7-0	Lost 3
11	Tampa Bay	77	35	35	7	32	77	220	266	23-14-2	12-21-5	4-6-0	Lost 2
12	Carolina	77	31	31	15	31	77	205	228	19-13-6	12-18-9	6-4-0	Won 1
13	NY Islanders	77	33	33	11	26	77	190	230	16-16-6	17-17-5	5-3-2	Won 3
14	Toronto	78	33	36	9	29	75	218	249	16-16-7	17-20-2	3-6-1	Lost 2
15	Montreal	77	29	34	14	24	72	199	214	14-15-10	15-19-4	4-2-4	OT 1
Western
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	ROW	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	x-St. Louis	78	48	20	10	44	106	202	151	30-4-4	18-16-6	5-2-3	OT 1
2	y-Vancouver	77	47	21	9	40	103	231	187	23-10-4	24-11-5	6-3-1	Won 4
3	Dallas	77	42	30	5	35	89	205	204	22-14-3	20-16-2	6-4-0	Won 1
4	x-Detroit	77	46	26	5	39	97	239	191	30-5-2	16-21-3	3-5-2	Lost 1
5	x-Nashville	77	44	25	8	40	96	219	202	24-9-5	20-16-3	5-4-1	Lost 1
6	Chicago	78	43	26	9	37	95	235	225	27-8-5	16-18-4	7-1-2	Won 1
7	Phoenix	78	38	27	13	32	89	202	202	20-13-6	18-14-7	5-2-3	Won 1
8	Los Angeles	77	38	27	12	32	88	178	165	21-14-4	17-13-8	7-3-0	Won 1
9	San Jose	78	39	29	10	31	88	211	201	24-12-3	15-17-7	5-4-1	Lost 2
10	Colorado	79	40	33	6	31	86	201	208	22-15-2	18-18-4	5-3-2	Lost 2
11	Calgary	78	35	28	15	32	85	191	215	21-11-6	14-17-9	4-3-3	Lost 1
12	Anaheim	77	33	33	11	30	77	194	213	21-17-2	12-16-9	4-5-1	Won 1
13	Minnesota	77	32	35	10	24	74	164	212	18-16-4	14-19-6	4-6-0	Won 1
14	Edmonton	77	31	37	9	26	71	207	226	18-16-5	13-21-4	5-2-3	Lost 1
15	Columbus	77	25	45	7	21	57	181	252	15-21-3	10-24-4	3-7-0	Won 1

Standings Legend:

GP - games played
W - wins
L - losses
OT - overtime losses
ROW - regulation + overtime wins
PTS - points
GF - goals for
GA - goals against
Home - home record
Away - away record
Last 10 - record of last 10 games
Streak - win/loss streak*
x - clinched playoff berth
y - clinched division title
z - presidents trophy

* Number of consecutive wins, regulation losses, or OT/SO losses

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{coyotes} Vrbata, Smith lead Coyotes past Sharks, 2-0

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Almost six months ago, in a nightmarish debut with his new team, Phoenix goalie Mike Smith was riddled for six goals in the first 38 minutes by the San Jose Sharks.

Since then Smith has been San Jose's worst nightmare. In five games, Smith has allowed just six goals and has blanked the Sharks three times. None was bigger than Thursday, when he pitched a brilliant 38-save shutout in a 2-0 win against San Jose.

Smith has six shutouts this season – half of them against the Sharks -- and his 15 saves in the first period set the tone for his team.

Radim Vrbata, mired in a long scoring slump and hampered by a strange allergic reaction, broke out with his 31st and 32nd goals – both spoon-fed by linemate Ray Whitney, whose two assists give him 999 points in his NHL career.

The win pushed the Coyotes back into seventh place in the Western Conference playoff scramble -- and pushed the Sharks out of the top eight. With 89 points, Phoenix is one ahead of eighth-place Los Angeles. The Kings and Sharks both have 88 points, but the Kings own the last playoff spot because they've played one fewer game.

Phoenix is even with Dallas for the Pacific Division lead, but the Coyotes have played one more game.

The Coyotes went 4-1-1 against San Jose this season and are now 12-6-5 in the Pacific Division – compared to an 8-11-1 record for the Sharks.

The Sharks put 15 shots on Smith in the first 20 minutes, but he stopped them all -- making huge stops on Martin Havlat, Torrey Mitchell, Logan Couture and Joe Pavelski, among others. San Jose goalie Antti Niemi (31 saves) was severely tested only once, stopping Mikkel Boedker on a breakaway with 4:30 left by poking the puck away with the knob of his stick.

But the Coyotes came out strong to start the second period, earning the game's first power play when Patrick Marleau was called for boarding Rostislav Klesla at 3:20. The NHL's worst power-play unit, which was 1-for-19 in its last six games and 0-for-16 at home since March 3 against Columbus, struck pay dirt.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson put a drive into traffic and off teammate Martin Hanzal before the puck dropped in the slot. Whitney tried a shot that was deflected right to Vrbata, who was all alone at the left post with a gaping net to shoot at. He pumped it home for his 31th goal of the season but his first since Feb. 21 against Los Angeles -- he had been scoreless in 12 games and missed five others because of an allergic reaction to penicillin he took for a nagging cold.

It stayed 1-0 until the third period when Phoenix -- now 29-1-0 when leading after two periods this season while allowing only 54 third-period goals – doubled the lead.  Pavelski's shot hit Ekman-Larsson and Whitney turned the play the other way with Vrbata on a 2-on-1. Whitney feathered the puck over defenseman Dan Boyle's stick and Vrbata whipped it home at 8:17.

The Coyotes honored Derek Morris, who reached the 1,000-game milestone on Sunday, with a pregame ceremony. Morris is the 278th NHL player and the fifth member of the Coyotes to reach the milestone.

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{coyotes} EA SPORTS and NHL.com LAUNCH NHL 13 COVER VOTE

 

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – March 29, 2012 – Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) announced that starting today, fans around the world have the opportunity to shape the face of the  EA SPORTS™ NHL® franchise, by participating in the first ever EA SPORTS NHL^® Cover Vote Campaign – sponsored by BlackBerry^® and hosted on NHL.com. The voting process will consist of two preliminary rounds, followed by a 16-player bracket as a field of 60 NHL players is narrowed down to one. The winning player will be unveiled as the EA SPORTS NHL® 13 Cover Athlete at the 2012 NHL Awards™ on June 20 at the Wynn Las Vegas in Las Vegas.

The first round of competition pits teammate against teammate and starts today and runs until April 11, the first day of the 2012 Stanley Cup® Playoffs. Fans can vote for their favorite player to represent their team in the next round.

NHL 13 Cover Athlete Voting Schedule:

 

• March 29 – April 11: Round of 60: one representative from each team plus two wild card selections advance*

• April 12 – April 22: 32-Player Leaderboard: fans vote for their favorite 16 candidates; top 16 vote-getters advance

• April 24 – June 4: Round of 16: single-elimination playoff bracket decides NHL 13 cover athlete

Fans worldwide are able to vote an unlimited number of times and are encouraged to vote as often as possible at NHL.com/CoverVote to ensure their favorite player advances through the rounds. Fans can also show their support by tweeting their picks using #NHL13Cover on Twitter. Visit the EA SPORTS NHL Facebook page for insider updates and additional content.

"The EA SPORTS NHL Franchise has had a rich tradition of outstanding cover athletes including Conn Smythe Trophy and Stanley Cup Winners, NHL All-Stars and Hall of Fame Members," said David Le, Marketing Director, EA SPORTS. "With fans selecting the cover athlete for NHL 13 they now control who gets to join that prestigious club."  

"Being the EA SPORTS NHL cover athlete is an honor that is coveted by many NHL players," said Adam Larry, NHLPA Director of Licensing. "With the EA SPORTS NHL 13 cover athlete being selected by the fans, the honor is now even greater. This vote campaign will be exciting for both the players and the fans, as they will be engaging online, and through social media, while the bracket narrows towards the fans' selection for the cover of NHL 13."  

The star-studded list of candidates participating in the campaign features NHL scoring leader Evgeni Malkin, 2011 Hart Trophy winner Corey Perry, NHL All-Stars and some of the most popular players in the NHL. The complete list of matchups can be found below:

Eastern Conference
Bruins	Tuukka Rask vs. Tyler Seguin	Lightning	Steven Stamkos vs. Victor Hedman
Canadiens	P.K. Subban vs. Tomas Plekanec	Maple Leafs	Phil Kessel vs. Tyler Bozak
Capitals	John Carlson vs. Brooks Laich	Panthers	Stephen Weiss vs. Tomas Fleischmann
Devils	Ilya Kovalchuk vs. Adam Larsson	Penguins	Evgeni Malkin vs. Marc-Andre Fleury
Flyers	Claude Giroux vs. Scott Hartnell	Rangers	Henrik Lundqvist vs. Brad Richards
Hurricanes	Eric Staal vs. Jeff Skinner	Sabres	Derek Roy vs. Thomas Vanek
Islanders	John Tavares vs. Michael Grabner	Senators	Erik Karlsson vs. Jason Spezza
Jets	Evander Kane vs. Andrew Ladd

Western Conference
Avalanche	Matt Duchene vs. Gabriel Landeskog	Kings	Anze Kopitar vs. Drew Doughty
Blackhawks	Patrick Sharp vs. Duncan Keith	Oilers	Jordan Eberle vs. Taylor Hall
Blue Jackets	R.J. Umberger vs. Ryan Johansen	Predators	David Legwand vs. Pekka Rinne
Blues	T.J. Oshie vs. David Perron	Red Wings	Pavel Datsyuk vs. Jimmy Howard
Canucks	Henrik Sedin vs. Alex Burrows	Sharks	Logan Couture vs. Brent Burns
Coyotes	Shane Doan vs. Keith Yandle	Stars	Loui Eriksson vs. Jamie Benn
Ducks	Corey Perry vs. Jonas Hiller	Wild	Mikko Koivu vs. Niklas Backstrom
Flames	Mikael Backlund vs. Matt Stajan

"The announcement of the cover athlete has become an event unto itself, and every year we look to grow the platform and innovate around the launch," said Keith Wachtel, Senior Vice President Integrated Sales, NHL. "The creation of the NHL 13 Cover Vote campaign, presented by BlackBerry, does just that by building an exciting new platform for players to connect with fans while bringing together two of our valued partners."

Assets:

To download assets, please visit the EA press site at http://info.ea.com.

NHL 13 is in development at EA Canada in Vancouver and has not yet been rated by the ESRB or PEGI; visit www.esrb.org and www.pegi.info for more information. Become a fan of EA SPORTS NHL on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/easportsnhl and follow us on Twitter via http://www.twitter.com/easportsnhl.

For more information about EA SPORTS, including news, video, blogs, forums and game communities, please visit www.easports.com to connect, share and compete.

EA SPORTS is one of the leading sports entertainment brands in the world, with top-selling videogame franchises, award-winning interactive technology, fan programs and cross-platform digital experiences. EA SPORTS creates connected experiences that ignite the emotion of sports through industry-leading sports videogames, including Madden NFL football, FIFA Soccer, NHL® hockey, NBA LIVE basketball, NCAA® Football, Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® golf, SSX, and Fight Night boxing. For more information about EA SPORTS, including news, video, blogs, forums and game apps, please visit www.easports.com.

*Wild card selections will be made by EA.

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{coyotes} San Jose (39-28-10) at Phoenix (37-27-13)

 

San Jose (39-28-10) at Phoenix (37-27-13)

• TV: NHLCA, CSCA

• Puck Drop: 10:00 pm EDT Thu Mar 29, 2012

The wild race for the Pacific Division title has teams jumping and dropping multiple spots in the Western Conference standings each night.

The San Jose Sharks fell from third place to eighth after their most recent loss, but they can reclaim their spot atop the Pacific with a victory Thursday night over the host Phoenix Coyotes, who hope to get back into playoff position.

San Jose (39-28-10) fell one point behind Dallas for the division lead after losing 3-1 at Anaheim on Wednesday, with the Stars beating Edmonton by the same score earlier in the night.

The Sharks and seventh-place Los Angeles each have 88 points, but the Kings own the tiebreaker. Phoenix (37-27-13) is lurking one point back in ninth.

Those four Pacific teams are competing for what likely will end up being three playoff spots. Captain Joe Thornton said San Jose must have a short memory as it pursues a fifth straight division crown.

"You've just got to win now. That's the only perspective we can think about right now," Thornton said. "We've got five games left, and we have to win them."

The Sharks dropped to 1-5-2 in their last eight road games Wednesday, though they'll be facing a Phoenix team that has gone just 2-3-2 at home this month after falling 4-0 to St. Louis on Sunday.

It marked the first time the Coyotes were shut out on home ice since a 5-0 loss to Vancouver on Nov. 25.

Phoenix coach Dave Tippett said his team is aware of what's on the line in Thursday's matchup, as well as the importance of improving at home. The Coyotes will be playing the second of a four-game homestand.

"It's obviously a huge game," Tippett said. "You watch the scores closely, but ultimately we have to take care of our own business. We've got five games left, and we have to find ways to play well at home and win at home to give ourselves a chance to be a playoff team."

This matchup is the third this month between the teams, with San Jose winning the most recent one 4-3 in a shootout Saturday.

The Sharks opened the season series with a 6-3 victory Oct. 8, but Phoenix responded with three consecutive wins - two via Mike Smith shutouts - prior to Saturday's loss.

"Throw out the first game and other than that they've been very competitive games, and I expect that again," Tippett said. "We're going to have to play a solid game and I'm sure (the Sharks) are thinking the same thing."

Phoenix hopes to get a boost from the return of captain Shane Doan, who had been serving a three-game suspension for elbowing Dallas' Jamie Benn on March 20.

Doan has five points in four games against the Sharks, and Radim Vrbata has two goals and two assists in those same four matchups. Both were out Saturday, but Vrbata also may return after missing the last two games with an undisclosed injury.

Smith's shutouts against the Sharks were both 3-0 wins, with 31 saves Nov. 12 and 42 saves March 10. He's 3-0-1 with a 1.47 goals-against average in his last four starts versus San Jose.

It's unclear if Antti Niemi will start back-to-back nights for the Sharks after stopping 25 of 27 shots Wednesday, or if Thomas Greiss will get the nod.

Team Comparison

Team	G	W	L	OTL	Pts	Standings	GF	GA	Road/Home
San Jose	77	39	28	10	88	3rd, Pacific	211	199	15-16-7 Road
Phoenix	77	37	27	13	87	4th, Pacific	200	202	19-13-6 Home

Injuries

No Injuries

Kurt Sauer D

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{coyotes} NHL Standings as of Thursday, March 29, 2012 1:01 AM.

 

as of Thursday, March 29, 2012 1:01 AM.

Eastern
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	ROW	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	x-NY Rangers	77	49	21	7	45	105	213	172	26-10-2	23-11-5	7-3-0	Won 3
2	Boston	76	45	28	3	37	93	249	186	23-13-2	22-15-1	5-5-0	Won 3
3	Florida	76	37	24	15	31	89	189	208	20-9-10	17-15-5	6-1-3	Won 1
4	x-Pittsburgh	76	47	23	6	38	100	256	200	27-9-2	20-14-4	7-2-1	Lost 1
5	x-Philadelphia	76	44	24	8	40	96	241	213	21-12-5	23-12-3	6-3-1	Lost 1
6	New Jersey	77	43	28	6	31	92	208	201	21-13-4	22-15-2	5-4-1	Won 1
7	Ottawa	77	39	28	10	34	88	236	227	20-15-4	19-13-6	5-3-2	Won 2
8	Buffalo	77	38	29	10	31	86	202	210	20-11-8	18-18-2	7-1-2	Won 5
9	Washington	77	38	31	8	36	84	206	219	24-11-4	14-20-4	5-3-2	Lost 1
10	Winnipeg	77	35	34	8	31	78	207	227	23-13-4	12-21-4	3-7-0	Lost 3
11	Tampa Bay	76	35	34	7	32	77	216	260	23-14-2	12-20-5	4-5-1	Lost 1
12	Carolina	77	31	31	15	31	77	205	228	19-13-6	12-18-9	6-4-0	Won 1
13	NY Islanders	76	32	33	11	25	75	185	227	15-16-6	17-17-5	4-4-2	Won 2
14	Toronto	77	33	35	9	29	75	217	242	16-15-7	17-20-2	3-5-2	Lost 1
15	Montreal	77	29	34	14	24	72	199	214	14-15-10	15-19-4	4-2-4	OT 1
Western
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	ROW	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	x-St. Louis	77	48	20	9	44	105	199	147	30-4-4	18-16-5	6-2-2	Won 2
2	y-Vancouver	77	47	21	9	40	103	231	187	23-10-4	24-11-5	6-3-1	Won 4
3	Dallas	77	42	30	5	35	89	205	204	22-14-3	20-16-2	6-4-0	Won 1
4	x-Detroit	77	46	26	5	39	97	239	191	30-5-2	16-21-3	3-5-2	Lost 1
5	x-Nashville	77	44	25	8	40	96	219	202	24-9-5	20-16-3	5-4-1	Lost 1
6	Chicago	77	42	26	9	37	93	231	222	26-8-5	16-18-4	6-2-2	OT 1
7	Los Angeles	77	38	27	12	32	88	178	165	21-14-4	17-13-8	7-3-0	Won 1
8	San Jose	77	39	28	10	31	88	211	199	24-12-3	15-16-7	6-3-1	Lost 1
9	Phoenix	77	37	27	13	31	87	200	202	19-13-6	18-14-7	4-2-4	Lost 1
10	Colorado	79	40	33	6	31	86	201	208	22-15-2	18-18-4	5-3-2	Lost 2
11	Calgary	78	35	28	15	32	85	191	215	21-11-6	14-17-9	4-3-3	Lost 1
12	Anaheim	77	33	33	11	30	77	194	213	21-17-2	12-16-9	4-5-1	Won 1
13	Minnesota	76	31	35	10	23	72	161	210	17-16-4	14-19-6	3-7-0	Lost 3
14	Edmonton	77	31	37	9	26	71	207	226	18-16-5	13-21-4	5-2-3	Lost 1
15	Columbus	77	25	45	7	21	57	181	252	15-21-3	10-24-4	3-7-0	Won 1

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Last Nights Topics and meeting notes

4/14 is the Titan Missile Museum trip.  For those interested in going and want to car pool, please be at the Utilities building prior to 7am.  For those who want to drive on their own, feel free to look the directions up at this website : http://www.titanmissilemuseum.org/ and feel free to show up at any time.

Price for the tour (Optional, not required) is $9.50

Bring a lunch and something to drink because there are no lunch facilities onsite.

 

4/26 is the Skywarn class at 7pm.  It's a Thursday.  Anyone wanting to help setup is encouraged to show up prior to that, preferably 6pm because we have tables and chairs to setup for usually around 60 people.

 

5/22 is going to be our Repeater class.  If you have a radio you would like to show off, or figure out how to program or anything of that nature please bring the radio and user manual with you.

 

6/23 is Field Day.  Still undecided as to where we are going.  If you have a recommendation please contact Vinnie via email.

 

I now remember what the July meeting topic was going to be.  Propagation.  I will do a class on Propagation for July.

August meeting topic will be at HeatSync Labs and Todd will give a presentation on a 2 Meter Antenna.

September, October and November meetings are still open.  One of these we will try to do an Echolink presentation and I think I will combine it with a "Hamspeak" and terminology class since we have some new hams amongst us.

 

If there are any other topics or classes that you want to see, or teach, please let me know.

--
Where am I going? And why am I in a handbasket?

KE7VLC Amateur Extra Class
Orion Thrower

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{coyotes} NHL Standings as of Tuesday, March 27, 2012 11:01 PM.

 

as of Tuesday, March 27, 2012 11:01 PM.

Eastern
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	ROW	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	x-NY Rangers	76	48	21	7	44	103	209	170	26-10-2	22-11-5	6-4-0	Won 2
2	Boston	76	45	28	3	37	93	249	186	23-13-2	22-15-1	5-5-0	Won 3
3	Florida	76	37	24	15	31	89	189	208	20-9-10	17-15-5	6-1-3	Won 1
4	x-Pittsburgh	76	47	23	6	38	100	256	200	27-9-2	20-14-4	7-2-1	Lost 1
5	x-Philadelphia	76	44	24	8	40	96	241	213	21-12-5	23-12-3	6-3-1	Lost 1
6	New Jersey	77	43	28	6	31	92	208	201	21-13-4	22-15-2	5-4-1	Won 1
7	Ottawa	77	39	28	10	34	88	236	227	20-15-4	19-13-6	5-3-2	Won 2
8	Buffalo	77	38	29	10	31	86	202	210	20-11-8	18-18-2	7-1-2	Won 5
9	Washington	77	38	31	8	36	84	206	219	24-11-4	14-20-4	5-3-2	Lost 1
10	Winnipeg	76	35	33	8	31	78	205	223	23-12-4	12-21-4	4-6-0	Lost 2
11	Tampa Bay	76	35	34	7	32	77	216	260	23-14-2	12-20-5	4-5-1	Lost 1
12	Carolina	77	31	31	15	31	77	205	228	19-13-6	12-18-9	6-4-0	Won 1
13	NY Islanders	76	32	33	11	25	75	185	227	15-16-6	17-17-5	4-4-2	Won 2
14	Toronto	77	33	35	9	29	75	217	242	16-15-7	17-20-2	3-5-2	Lost 1
15	Montreal	77	29	34	14	24	72	199	214	14-15-10	15-19-4	4-2-4	OT 1
Western
Rank	Team	GP	W	L	OT	ROW	PTS	GF	GA	Home	Away	Last 10	Streak
1	x-St. Louis	77	48	20	9	44	105	199	147	30-4-4	18-16-5	6-2-2	Won 2
2	y-Vancouver	76	46	21	9	39	101	230	187	22-10-4	24-11-5	5-4-1	Won 3
3	San Jose	76	39	27	10	31	88	210	196	24-12-3	15-15-7	6-3-1	Won 3
4	x-Detroit	76	46	25	5	39	97	237	187	30-5-2	16-20-3	3-5-2	Won 2
5	Nashville	77	44	25	8	40	96	219	202	24-9-5	20-16-3	5-4-1	Lost 1
6	Chicago	77	42	26	9	37	93	231	222	26-8-5	16-18-4	6-2-2	OT 1
7	Dallas	76	41	30	5	34	87	202	203	22-14-3	19-16-2	6-4-0	Lost 1
8	Phoenix	77	37	27	13	31	87	200	202	19-13-6	18-14-7	4-2-4	Lost 1
9	Los Angeles	76	37	27	12	31	86	175	165	21-14-4	16-13-8	6-4-0	Lost 2
10	Colorado	78	40	32	6	31	86	201	207	22-15-2	18-17-4	5-3-2	Lost 1
11	Calgary	77	35	27	15	32	85	191	212	21-10-6	14-17-9	5-2-3	Won 1
12	Anaheim	76	32	33	11	29	75	191	212	20-17-2	12-16-9	4-5-1	Lost 1
13	Minnesota	76	31	35	10	23	72	161	210	17-16-4	14-19-6	3-7-0	Lost 3
14	Edmonton	76	31	36	9	26	71	206	223	18-15-5	13-21-4	5-2-3	Won 2
15	Columbus	76	24	45	7	20	55	177	250	14-21-3	10-24-4	3-7-0	Lost 2

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