Early struggles for goalie Karel Vejmelka, who is pulled in Coyotes' loss to Ducks

Everything just seemed a bit off for the Coyotes on Friday night against the Anaheim Ducks. 

It started with the planned hat giveaway for a few thousand early-arriving fans on Los Yotes Night, the team's salute to the Latino community. There were no hats to hand out, however, as the team announced a global supply issue related to COVID-19 as the reason the items were not yet available. 

Fans received a voucher that gave them an option to have a hat sent to them, or receive a ticket discount on the night of the game the hats will be distributed, April 18. But once everyone was in their seats for Friday's game, the Coyotes on-ice product didn't deliver, either.

The Ducks, who'd lost 11 straight games in a freefall out of playoff contention, shut out the Coyotes 5-0, the sixth time Arizona has been blanked on the scoreboard this season.

The Ducks scored three goals in less than 10 minutes of the first period, with the typically steady young goaltender Karel Vejmelka seemingly a tick too slow to react to the shots. Vejmelka made his seventh consecutive start, over which he played in three different time zones and played 104-plus minutes in back-to-back road games at Winnipeg and Edmonton.

Vejmelka played all of Wednesday's game in the Coyotes' win over San Jose, but in that game, the team lost All-Star forward and leading goal scorer Clayton Keller to a serious leg injury. Vejmelka, having faced nine shots, was pulled from the net after the Coyotes fell behind 3-0, and Josef Kořenář finished up. 

One of Anaheim's goals was a lacrosse-style highlight from rising star Trevor Zegras in the first period. 

"For us it was more trying to create something," Coyotes head coach André Tourigny said of going to Kořenář, who made his home debut in an Arizona uniform. "The story of the game, our start was not the start we wanted. On the first goal, that’s bad execution from us. We opened the ice for nothing. And then from there, we’re chasing and it’s tough for us when we’re chasing. We need to play tight hockey with a lot of urgency right from the get-go, and then from there we have a chance."

Not having Keller also appeared to be a factor, as his scoring presence and all-around effort that made this season his best as a Coyote was missed. 

"It's obviously a big loss. 'Kells' is our guy and when he goes down guys have to step up here. The good thing is, tomorrow's a new day and there's another game coming up," Coyotes forward Michael Carcone said. 

"There's a little bit of a hangover from that for sure, emotionally," Tourigny said. "There's an adjustment we need to make as a team. We'll need to navigate through that and get better everyday."

The Coyotes (21-42-5) are beset with injuries, and are playing with a lineup of 10 players who started the season in the AHL with the Tucson Roadrunners. There have been several notable performances from the younger players this season, but Friday night there were none that stood out much beyond a couple of early good looks created by Carcone. 

"No excuses, it's got to go in the net," Carcone said. "I just thought we didn't capitalize on opportunities. I thought we had a good chunk of Grade A's (good scoring chances) that just didn't go in, and when that happens it kind of deflates you. You just have to stick with it and I don't think we did that."

Kořenář, another player recently up from Tucson, saw his most extensive playing time and had 26 saves in 50 minutes and change. 

The frustrated Coyotes racked up 32 minutes of fighting-related penalties, including 10-minute game misconducts for Jay Beagle and Phil Kessel after a brawl involving several players late in the game. 

Beagle unleashed a few right hands to Ducks leading scorer Troy Terry's face, which the Ducks took exception to but Tourigny had no issue with. 

"You can have your read on what exactly happened. I don't see anything wrong. It's the reverse, I think," Tourigny said of Beagle. "We need to stand up for ourselves and I like what he did. There's a whack at our goalie and he had a presence there. Then he gets jumped and he answers the bell."

Kessel was sent to the locker room apparently for a tirade at an official right after Beagle's fight. 

'Bear' track

Tourigny has largely been satisfied with his team's effort in losses, but specified that slow starts affect the team's ability play the way they need to in order to win.

Up next

The Coyotes go on the road for back-to-back games in the Midwest, starting with the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday. 

Get in touch with Jose Romero at Jose.Romero@gannett.com. Find him on Twitter at @RomeroJoseM.