Playing in his sixth full NHL season, Clayton Keller has really stepped up his play. He has 78 points including 34 goals, in 72 games this season. That comes to 1.07 points per game. To say he’s on a rip, is putting it mildly. Keller’s 78 points this season are a career-best, and the 24-year-old is closing in on becoming the first Coyotes player to record 80 points in a season since Keith Tkachuk recorded 86 in 1996-97. Quite an accomplishment.
The Future of the Yotes Success Lies With Clayton Keller
He was recently named NHL player of the week and with 10 points in his last five games, it’s obvious he’s a talented player. He’s finally receiving national recognition for his excellent level of play.
As this team drives forward toward the fruits of a well-planned rebuild, Keller looks to be the franchise player of the club. The team’s future in the Valley of the Sun lies with the passage of three propositions on the Tempe ballot on May 16th. If they pass, the Coyotes will finally have an NHL-sized arena after a wait to have the construction process complete.
It goes without saying that Clayton Keller will be a key player to lead this team after the rebuild is completed. GM Bill Armstrong has stated that he feels the team is about 40 percent into the rebuild. Armstrong has built a treasure chest of 37 draft picks over the next three years.
Keller’s Future Line-mates
Right now, the progression of young Barrett Hayton can be attributed to his play on a line with Keller and Nick Schmaltz. Hayton has collected 14 points in his last 10 games. While this trio may not stay together, once Logan Cooley arrives he will definitely add to the young exciting team that Armstrong is assembling.
Having a line with Keller, Cooley, and Hayton could be an offense ready to compete for a playoff spot. Whether that takes two or three years to develop is still unknown.
Much can depend on the draft picks the Yotes acquire. Of course, they had hoped to be fortunate enough to grab the first overall selection and add a transformational player in Connor Bedard. But, now a funny thing happened… the team has played much better than expected. Over their last 20 games, they have a respectable 10-6-4 record. Not exactly tanking quality stats.
Clayton Keller Contract Was Well Deserved
Keller signed an eight-year $57.2 million contract in September 2019 which took effect in the 2020-21 season. His production that first year of his deal wasn’t exactly earth-shattering. He had 35 points in 56 games. His next season in 2021-22, he increased that to 63 points in 67 games. That was the year he broke his leg and was sidelined for the rest of the season. He was on pace for 77 points had he been able to play all 82 games.
It took a while for Keller to get going, but now it seems like there’s not much slowing him down. There were critics (yours truly included) who doubted that Keller was performing at the level of his contract worth. He has certainly shown that he deserves the highest contract on the team.
With a new arena on the horizon, (yes, it is going to pass) Keller’s offensive production will be vital in the team’s advancement in the standings.
Losing Players at the Trade Deadline Hasn’t Slowed Things
The Coyotes lost Jakob Chychrun, Shayne Gostisbehere, Nick Bjugstad, Nick Ritchie, and Dysin Mayo to trades. Even with that, they have gone 6-3-1 since their roster took a hit. A lot of credit must go to the coaching staff. Andre Tourigny has done a terrific job with reduced resources. He gets results. The young players like Keller and Hayton are blooming into real quality NHL players.
Final Words
Clayton Keller was the 7th overall selection in the 2016 NHL draft. If the Coyotes can be fortunate enough to get another pick at that or a lower choice, they can really be a team to reckon with going forward. Even adding Logan Cooley will be a huge plus to the team’s all-around talent.
Drafting Clayton Keller has turned out to be a very wise decision. He has transformed into a top NHL performer and did it after a nasty injury which required dedicated hours of rehab and hard work.
In other words, he’s a keeper.
More must-reads: