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The defending Western Conference Champions have looked anything but champs so far this season and there are numerous explanations to explain why this is the case. First and foremost, as is often the case, is the injury bug which has hit this team hard. Johan Franzen, out for at least 4 months, is a significant loss to that offense, whilst Andreas Lilja on defense provides consistent zone coverage even if he's not always in the spotlight. They've also been without All-Star Pavel Datsyuk for the past week, although he's expected to return for this contest.

Inconsistent goaltending is also an issue, as Chris Osgood is 3-2-1 with a 3.21 GAA and a .890SV% in 6 games. He needs to be better; it's that simple. And then there's the fact that this team lost good players in the off-season and might not be as good as they've been in years past. I think fatigue and the loss of personnel have impacted this team and we'll see unpredictable performances from this squad throughout the season.

On the other hand, there's the Dave Tippett led Phoenix Coyotes, who've been fantastic so far this season, motivated by the incredible performance of goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov and his miniscule 1.14 Goals Against Average. This is a young, energetic squad who play with passion and enthusiasm.

There's talent in this team but at the end of the day, bringing in Dave Tippett is the best move the organization has ever made. No offense to Gretzky but Tippett is a better coach (and hey, Gretz, you were the better player!) and is fantastic defensively. That is why the Coyotes have gone to Pittsburgh and beaten the Pens 3-0, or gone to San Jose and beaten them 1-0 in a shootout.

They are responsible and play like it. Yet, like a lot of teams in sports, these guys likely won't get any respect for most of the season. Hence, in this contest at home, they are still dogs at a nice payout of [2.12]. Take advantage of this; back the Coyotes.