The opening months of the National Hockey League season were full of ups and downs for the Arizona Coyotes as they looked to keep up in a tight Pacific Division race.
There is still more rebuilding to do for head coach Rick Tocchet’s team with a youngster like former Boston University standout Clayton Keller leading the offense, but Scituate, Mass., native Conor Garland has enjoyed being a part of the ride for every second as a rookie at the sport’s highest level.
Garland’s first month as a Coyote was full of highlights as he made the challenging adjustment to the NHL. He debuted Dec. 8 against San Jose, made his first road appearance in Boston three nights later, helped the Coyotes earn a win at Madison Square Garden, and overcame a slow start offensively to find the back of the net just before Christmas.
“I just have to play my game,” said Garland, who recorded eight goals, 19 points (to lead the team at the time) and a plus-11 rating in 18 games with the American Hockey League’s Tucson Roadrunners before being called up to the NHL for the first time.
“It’s obviously a little faster. Everybody’s got to be in the right spot every time, and you have to be on every shift, so it’s going to be about being consistent and doing what got me here.”
Garland’s persistence on offense was rewarded over time, and it led to putting together a three-game point streak. After starting his NHL career without a point for seven consecutive games, he scored a goal on Dec. 22 against Colorado and made it two in a row the following night in San Jose.
Injuries to Vinnie Hinostroza and Michael Grabner allowed Garland to take a consistent position in the Arizona lineup throughout December, but Tocchet had been impressed with the rookie’s play since he was with the big club in training camp. In fact, the coach said that Garland could very well have found himself with the Coyotes from season’s beginning if it weren’t for a broken hand.
“One thing I like about him is he’s a really good second man on the puck,” Tocchet said. “He’s really done a nice job of getting in some battles and winning some battles and generating (chances). Those are the things that he has to continue to do. I’ve been really happy with him. He’s starting to get some comfortability in his game.”
Garland has felt comfortable at every stage of his hockey career, and it’s come with time with Arizona as well.
The 22-year-old winger hasn’t been afraid to try to make something happen even if it didn’t lead to points at first as he fired off 24 shots on goal through his first 10 games. He logged at least one in each of those games and totaled 19 in the seven contests before he recorded a point.
One goal or one point often leads to another, and that’s exactly what happened for Garland as the month of December neared an end.
“It’s tough not to grip your stick (too tight),” Garland said of the scoreless drought to begin his time with the Coyotes. “There were a couple I had that just didn’t go in, but I definitely felt more confident with the puck. Things are starting to slow down for me. I just have to try to stick with it and not overthink it.”
The 5-foot-10, 165-pounder’s path to the NHL is unlike that of many New England natives.
Before signing with the NHL team that drafted him with the No. 123 overall pick (fifth round) in 2015 and making his presence known in the organization over two-plus seasons in Tucson, Garland rewrote the record books for the Quebec Major Junior League’s Moncton Wildcats. His 328 career points from 2012-16 still stand as the most in franchise history.
Garland’s only Division 1 college options were New Hampshire and Penn State, so he opted to take his talents to Moncton, and he’s happy with where the road has led to date.
“The team that believed in me was Moncton, so I went to the Quebec league and everything worked out for me,” said Garland, who became the first-ever Coyote to wear No. 83 when he made his NHL debut. “You have to go where people want you and they want you to play. I’m lucky that things have worked out with Arizona so far.”
A different road? Maybe. But it still led to the ultimate place for every hockey player.
Some locals have to wait years to get their first professional skate on TD Garden ice, but Garland’s first appearance in an NHL road game came in his hometown building. Thus, it was a unique chance — and the Garden was a unique place — to take a brief moment to reflect on a young life’s worth of hockey.
It was also unique for another reason as a fellow Scituate native skated on the opposite side in that game in Boston Bruins rookie Ryan Donato.
Donato, a former Harvard standout, made his NHL debut at the end of last season. He and Garland have been friends for years and spend a lot of time together upon returning home each summer.
“We live a couple streets apart,” Garland said. “We fish and skate a lot together, so it’s awesome to be on the same ice as him. We always keep up with how each other are doing, but it’s good to see him out there and play against him.”
There is a lot of hockey to be played this season and it is still to be determined where Garland will remain in the weeks and months ahead, but the Massachusetts native made his goals clear and simple.
“To be able to play here as long as I can and prove that I can play at this level,” said Garland. “I just have to play the way I play. I got here because of what I was able to do for two years in ‘The A,’ so I want to be myself. I don’t want to come up and be someone that I’m not.”
