Former Silvertip Peter Mueller scored his first NHL goal last night in the Phoenix Coyotes’ 4-2 home loss against Edmonton. It was quite the momentous occasion from an Everett standpoint as it was the first NHL goal ever scored by a former Tip.
Mueller scored his goal on the power play, tapping in a rebound from in close. Here’s what he told the Associated Press after the game: “I wanted to make it known that I want to play and I will work hard on the ice and off the ice. It’s awesome to score the first goal but, you know, it doesn’t matter. It’s for the boys, getting two points on the board.”
But does the goal indicate Mueller will remain an ex-Tip?
After seing his ice time dwindle to just over six minutes before being scratched in Phoenix’s previous game, Mueller saw his PT increase back up to 13:25 last night. However, the goal is his only point in five games and he’s got a minus-4 rating.
My gut tells me Mueller’s going to stick with the Coyotes, despite his early struggles. I’m not sure whether his goal is going to propel Mueller instantly to bigger and better things, but this situation just screams Gilbert Brule to me. Brule had an awful season last year as a 19-year-old for a bad Columbus Blue Jackets team, but the Jackets kept him up to save face because they’d put so much hype into the former Vancouver Giants star. From afar it seems Phoenix put itself into a similar position with Mueller, and it yet to be shown whether the Coyotes brass has the wherewithal to admit mistake should Mueller continue to struggle with the adjustment to the NHL. So I still don’t expect to see Mueller back in Everett, but I wouldn’t be surprised if I find myself writing about the subject a while longer.
On a related note, it’s interesting to see how Mueller’s fellow 19-year-old WHL alumnus, Milan Lucic, is faring with the Boston Bruins. Unlike Mueller, no one expected the former Giant to stick in the NHL this season. But through six games he’s been earning rave reviews with a goal, an assist and three fights (Lucic reportedly winning all three) in roughly 10 minutes a game. Zach Hamill, Lucic’s Boston teammate, said he thought Lucic was going to stay in Boston. That’s because Lucic, with his size and energy and checking abilities, is capable of contributing in just 10 minutes a game as a third- or fourth-line player. It’s generally believed an offensive player like Mueller needs to be on one of the top two lines to make an impact.
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