Three years ago, the number three seemed to imply only good fortune for the Coyotes.
They made their third straight playoff appearance as the No. 3 team in the Western Conference and capped off their magical season with an appearance in the third round.
But now, the No. 3 pick in the June NHL draft reeks of the Coyotes' bad luck in the early stages of a rebuild that was ignited when a different No. 3 (Keith Yandle) was shipped from Arizona to New York.
Instead of waiting for more to go wrong (doesn't that usually happen in threes?