With no hockey games or playoff series to write about, we at Last Word on Hockey need to get creative. Have you ever wondered how a player from the past would do playing on a team’s current roster? With that in mind, plugging a talented centre named Keith Tkachuk onto the current Coyotes roster will be the focus of this piece.
Keith Tkachuk on the Current Arizona Coyotes Team
Since we’re all in a pandemic trance and things seem to be at a standstill, why not imagine how Keith Tkachuk would fit into the current Coyotes team?
It goes without saying that Tkachuk was a phenomenal player in his era. He started playing at the ripe young age of 19-years-old and never looked back. He was the Winnipeg Jets He was the 19th overall selection in the 1990 NHL Draft. In just his second full season of play in Winnipeg, he was selected as the team captain. During the 1993-94 season, he tallied 41 goals and 40 assists in 84 games. Yep, they played an 84-game schedule back then.
While with the Coyotes, Tkachuk would go on to score 179 goals, 155 assists for 334 total points in 332 games. So, for this simulation (that’s all we have these days) let’s take his average statistics with the then Phoenix Coyotes and see how that would fit in to today’s roster. Taking into consideration that the style of play back when Tkachuk played is completely different than today’s style, let’s just use the statistics to evaluate what impact he’d have on the current team.
He averaged 0.54 goals a game, and 0.47 assists a game from the 1996-97 to 2000-01 seasons. Taking those numbers he would have about 36 goals, 31 assists if he was on the 2019-20 Coyotes roster. How does that fit in with the rest of the team statistics? IT DOMINATES!
Arizona Coyotes Need for a Dominant Centre
If Tkachuk were on the current Coyotes team, he would be leading the team in scoring. That’s a no-brainer. He would demolish Nick Schmaltz 45 points in 70 games by an astounding 22 points. Conor Garland‘s 22 goals would be surpassed by Tkachuk’s 36 tallies and no doubt the team would be in a playoff position.
Not only would Tkachuk add scoring prowess, he was one tough customer. He averaged 2.16 minutes in the penalty box and wouldn’t back down from some fisticuffs if the need was there. That type of physical play is definitely missing in the current Coyotes lineup. The team is 30th in fights for the current suspended season, with just four fighting majors. They actually had six fighting majors during the pre-season. Tkachuk’s toughness combined with his scoring ability would be a definite plus to the Desert Dogs’ attack.
While a player like Lawson Crouse possesses all the physical attributes (6′-4″, 220 pounds) to be that tough guy on the current roster, he hasn’t really displayed it much. Take the high hit that Oliver Ekman-Larsson sustained from one Jamie Benn earlier this season. Tkachuk wouldn’t have any of that when his teammate was assaulted. While Benn received an ejection for the hit, the next time the two teams met, Tkachuk would have taken Mr. Benn to task.
What Line Would Tkachuk be on?
Without a doubt, he would be the first-line centre. Who you put on his line could be an interesting concept. Selecting Taylor Hall on the left side with Phil Kessel on the right would be a significantly difficult line to stop. Throwing Schmaltz on the right side or Clayton Keller on the left side would be another option.
In any line combination, adding a Keith Tkachuk adds size (6′-2″, 235 pounds), scoring, and toughness to the first line. It’s almost the exact missing ingredient the team lacks as it struggles to get to the playoffs this season for the first time since 2012. Tkachuk helped lead his team to four of five possible playoff appearances even though they never advanced past the quarterfinals.
In Conclusion
The current Arizona Coyotes have been searching for a centre of Tkachuk’s stature ever since he left the team in March 2001 when he was traded to the St. Louis Blues. While they do have young players like Christian Dvorak and Barrett Hayton, they don’t even come close to the level of play exhibited by Keith Tkachuk.
With the prospect of including a Hall-of-Fame player like Tkachuk into today’s Coyotes lineup, it does make one appreciate the players of the past and what they contributed to the success of the franchise.
Without a doubt, if the current Coyotes could clone a Keith Tkachuk to play for them, they’d be in a much better position today.
Unfortunately, this was just a simulation. You may step back into reality now… unless you like this sort of thing.
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