For the Arizona Coyotes, the 2016-17 season has been a building season. This was not unexpected, and the gruesome 22-34-7 record has only allowed the Coyotes to be ahead of the disastrous Colorado Avalanche in the NHL standings. The Coyotes had the trade deadline pass with relatively little happening. Their only significant move was to trade Martin Hanzal and Ryan White to the Minnesota Wild for younger assets. Therefore, the young team headed into Raleigh tonight has only gotten younger in the past few days.
Offensively, the young Coyotes have actually been led by one of their veterans.