NHL Playoffs 2012: Recounting Coyotes' Run to the Conference Finals

A timely test of the Phoenix Coyotes’ compete level has brought a rare, refreshing splash to the desert, enough of a wave for the team to ride through three-plus months of near dominance.

It has been enough to end the Winnipeg/Phoenix franchise’s 25-year Stanley Cup playoff series victory drought with still more left over to boost them to their first conference final. When it finally runs out remains to be seen, but it may not be for another month yet.

And to think that entering a Feb. 4 meeting at Jobing.com Arena, the visiting San Jose Sharks were running away with the Pacific Division lead while the Coyotes were in the middle of the non-playoff pack as the No. 12 seed in the Western Conference.

A regulation loss that night would have docked the Coyotes to a .500 record at 22-22-8 and would have augmented San Jose’s lead over the second-place Dallas Stars to 10 points. Phoenix, meanwhile, would have trailed by 14 points in the division derby and still have at least four teams blocking them from the playoff borderline.

Instead, with six individual multi-point efforts, the Coyotes reaped a 5-3 victory to commence the second-to-last full month of the regular season.

One week and four additional unanswered wins later, Phoenix found itself back in the playoff picture.

A 3-0 whitewash of the Chicago Blackhawks on Feb. 11 gave them a three-point upper hand on Dallas for eighth place in the conference. And they suddenly trailed the division-leading Sharks by four points.

Starting with the San Jose game, the Coyotes would go on a 20-6-5 romp through the homestretch, including an 11-0-1 run through February that transformed them from potential playoff no-shows to division leaders in a matter of three weeks.

After missing out on eight straight points to start the month of March, they only lost one regulation decision out of their final 15 regular season engagements. But each point was most literally precious as Phoenix was not assured a playoff spot until an off night on April 5 and did not seal the division title and home ice for the first round until winning the season finale over Minnesota, 4-1.

In 28 total appearances, goaltender Mike Smith piloted the pivotal two-month surge, going 20-5-2 with six shutouts, a 1.84 goals-against average and .943 save percentage.

Little has changed between the Coyotes’ last-minute acquisition of their playoff passport and their use of it. Smith has posted an 8-3 record through the first two rounds with two shutouts, a 1.77 goals-against average and .948 save percentage.

In front of Smith, a balanced strike force featuring 12 different goal-scorers and 17 individual point-getters has fueled the fifth-most prolific playoff offense in the league past the likes of Chicago and Nashville.

In addition, though a hardly reprehensible 4-1 on the road, Phoenix is one of only four teams with a winning record on home ice in the NHL playoffs at 4-2. And the Coyotes shall open their third consecutive series at Jobing.com Arena when the conference finals begin Sunday night against a fellow Cinderella squad from Los Angeles.

The Kings finished a mere two points behind the Coyotes. And like Phoenix, LA cemented its playoff berth at the 11th hour on April 5 and has since carried over its urgency to an 8-1 run through the first two rounds.