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HalifaxDrunk · 09-27-2007, 01:39 PM

Welcome to Arizona, it's a Dog Eat Dog League!

After missing the post season in 2005/06 and then stung by the disappointment of last spring's early exit in the first round of the CPHL Playoffs, the Phoenix Coyotes have spent the summer remodeling a lineup that delivered 94 points last year. Resigning UFAs was the name of the game, re-inking Mats Sundin, Michal Handzus, Pavel Kubina & Chris Neil were the cornerstones for this season.

Some of GM Drunk's renovations have been forced upon him, such as the free-agent defections Mike Johnson, & Sandis Ozolinsh (Yeah, like we wanted him back anyway). Others, meanwhile, have been self-imposed, such as the trade of starting goaltender Curtis Joseph to Colorado in exchange for winger Josef Vasicek and back-up goalie Yan Danis, the move shaved a multitude of millions from the Yotes cap. Rather then lose free agent Radim Vrbata for nothing GM Drunk traded him to San Jose for 24 year old defenseman Milan Jurcina. Drunk also trimmed forwards Serge Aubin, Andreas Johansson and Ramzi Abid, while adding free agent Ronald Petrovicky.

The result, however, leaves the Coyotes in position to once again be among the playoff hunt in the Howe Conference as the core of the team remains intact.

Plus, the team still has goalie Vesa Toskala, considered by many to be among the game's future elite goalies. Toskala backed up Joesph last season, but is ready to take on full time keeper duties. Vesa posted a 16-7-3 record last season with a 2.87 GAA and 2 shutouts. The team has high hopes that new backup goalie Danis can shoulder the load when called upon.

The defensive core will remain the big question mark this season. The Coyotes may not have a huge “stud” d-man but hope to compete by committee. Filip Kuba, Paval Kubina, Colin White and Brett Clark can expect lots of ice time this season.

The coyotes have announced that Mats Sundin will continue to wear the “C” this year with Filip Kuba and Jamie Langenbrunner named as the teams assistant captains.

All in all, the floor plan remains in place for resigned coach Claude Julien to once again steer the Coyotes into the playoffs.

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2007/07 Team Calendars

Overwhelming early bird sales of the 2007/08 Coyote team calendar sold out (45,000 copies) in 15 minutes last week. Due to the popularity an additional 15,000 calendars will be released this week. The Coyotes will also present the first 6,000 fans to our home season opener with a collector’s edition of the calendar signed by the entire team.

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New Team Mascots

Finally the Team would like to introduce our newest family additions. We are pleased to present five team mascots for the 2007/08 season. Please welcome our newest Desert Dogs, 5 yellow Labs have been adopted by the team and will play a prominent role this year in the press (pre & post game reports).

Now it’s up to you to name them. Please suggest names in the thread and a poll will eventually be created to name the mascots.

09-27-2007, 01:39 PM	#1
HalifaxDrunk #2 960 Prankster Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: In a Pub Exp:	Coyotes seson preview - Who let the Desert Dogs out? Welcome to Arizona, it's a Dog Eat Dog League! After missing the post season in 2005/06 and then stung by the disappointment of last spring's early exit in the first round of the CPHL Playoffs, the Phoenix Coyotes have spent the summer remodeling a lineup that delivered 94 points last year. Resigning UFAs was the name of the game, re-inking Mats Sundin, Michal Handzus, Pavel Kubina & Chris Neil were the cornerstones for this season. Some of GM Drunk's renovations have been forced upon him, such as the free-agent defections Mike Johnson, & Sandis Ozolinsh (Yeah, like we wanted him back anyway). Others, meanwhile, have been self-imposed, such as the trade of starting goaltender Curtis Joseph to Colorado in exchange for winger Josef Vasicek and back-up goalie Yan Danis, the move shaved a multitude of millions from the Yotes cap. Rather then lose free agent Radim Vrbata for nothing GM Drunk traded him to San Jose for 24 year old defenseman Milan Jurcina. Drunk also trimmed forwards Serge Aubin, Andreas Johansson and Ramzi Abid, while adding free agent Ronald Petrovicky. The result, however, leaves the Coyotes in position to once again be among the playoff hunt in the Howe Conference as the core of the team remains intact. Plus, the team still has goalie Vesa Toskala, considered by many to be among the game's future elite goalies. Toskala backed up Joesph last season, but is ready to take on full time keeper duties. Vesa posted a 16-7-3 record last season with a 2.87 GAA and 2 shutouts. The team has high hopes that new backup goalie Danis can shoulder the load when called upon. The defensive core will remain the big question mark this season. The Coyotes may not have a huge “stud” d-man but hope to compete by committee. Filip Kuba, Paval Kubina, Colin White and Brett Clark can expect lots of ice time this season. The coyotes have announced that Mats Sundin will continue to wear the “C” this year with Filip Kuba and Jamie Langenbrunner named as the teams assistant captains. All in all, the floor plan remains in place for resigned coach Claude Julien to once again steer the Coyotes into the playoffs. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2007/07 Team Calendars Overwhelming early bird sales of the 2007/08 Coyote team calendar sold out (45,000 copies) in 15 minutes last week. Due to the popularity an additional 15,000 calendars will be released this week. The Coyotes will also present the first 6,000 fans to our home season opener with a collector’s edition of the calendar signed by the entire team. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Team Mascots Finally the Team would like to introduce our newest family additions. We are pleased to present five team mascots for the 2007/08 season. Please welcome our newest Desert Dogs, 5 yellow Labs have been adopted by the team and will play a prominent role this year in the press (pre & post game reports). Now it’s up to you to name them. Please suggest names in the thread and a poll will eventually be created to name the mascots.