And if there’s an honorable mention amidst all the ‘didn’t-see-that-coming’ storylines to develop in the first quarter, it probably needs to involve the Coyotes because they are not falling off the face of the earth the way so many expected. Instead, they have 18 points in 16 games, despite a massive early concentration of road games, where they are a remarkably respectable 6-7-1. The news got even better this week because both Nick Schmaltz and Jakob Chychrun finally returned to the lineup Monday. Schmaltz had been absent since the opening game of the season. On a team with limited talent, getting back last year’s No. 2 scorer was critical.

=Eric Duhatschek of The Athletic where you can read ($) his view many more topics.