2003–04 Phoenix Coyotes season

Off-season

Phoenix went into the talent-rich 2003 NHL entry draft without a first or second-round draft choice, both having been traded in part for Daymond Langkow in 2001 and Brad Ference at the 2003 trading deadline, respectively. They made their first selection in the third round, 77th overall, selecting centerman Tyler Redenbach. None of the eight players they drafted played a single NHL game.

Defenseman and team captain Teppo Numminen was traded to the Dallas Stars on July 22. Forward Shane Doan was named his replacement on the eve of training camp.

Regular season

Though the Coyotes finished last in their division (13th in the Conference), for a remarkable span in late December and early January, the team attracted the attention of the sports world, as goaltender Brian Boucher set an NHL record for consecutive shutouts. From December 31 to January 9, Boucher and the Coyotes recorded five consecutive shut-out victories, outscoring their opponents 18–0 during the span. The streak was broken on January 11 in a game against the visiting Atlanta Thrashers, when Randy Robitaille scored on Boucher at 6:16 of the first period.

The Coyotes struggled after the streak, winning only six of their remaining 40 games. A winless streak of 15 games from February 21 to March 21 is the third longest in franchise history and the longest since the franchise moved to Arizona in 1996. Head coach Bob Francis was fired on February 24 and replaced by assistant coach Rick Bowness, who served as interim head coach for the remainder of the season and throughout the 2004–05 NHL lockout.

Final standings

Schedule and results

|- |1||October 10, 2003||2–1 OT||align=left|St. Louis Blues (2003–04)||1–0–0–0 || |- |2||October 12, 2003||2–0||align=left|@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2003–04)||2–0–0–0 || |- |3||October 15, 2003||2–1||align=left|@ Florida Panthers (2003–04)||3–0–0–0 || |- |4||October 16, 2003||1–5||align=left|@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2003–04)||3–1–0–0 || |- |5||October 18, 2003||4–5||align=left|Philadelphia Flyers (2003–04)||3–2–0–0 || |- |6||October 23, 2003||4–5||align=left|Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04)||3–3–0–0 || |- |7||October 25, 2003||4–4 OT||align=left|@ San Jose Sharks (2003–04)||3–3–1–0 || |- |8||October 26, 2003||3–3 OT||align=left|@ Vancouver Canucks (2003–04)||3–3–2–0 || |- |9||October 28, 2003||2–2 OT||align=left|Chicago Blackhawks (2003–04)||3–3–3–0 || |- |10||October 31, 2003||1–4||align=left|Vancouver Canucks (2003–04)||3–4–3–0 ||

| Legend:

Player statistics

Scoring

• Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left wing; RW = Right wing
• • = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Coyotes only.*
• • = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Coyotes only.*

Goaltending

• • = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Coyotes only.*
• • = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Coyotes only.*

Awards and records

Awards

Records

Brian Boucher set two modern day (since the 1943–44 season when the center ice red line was introduced) NHL records. From December 22, 2003, to January 11, 2004, Boucher went 332 minutes and 1 second without allowing a goal. From December 31, 2003, to January 9, 2004, Boucher recorded five shutouts in a row, which also set the modern day record for consecutive shutouts by a team.

Milestones

Transactions

The Coyotes were involved in the following transactions from June 10, 2003, the day after the deciding game of the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals, through June 7, 2004, the day of the deciding game of the 2004 Stanley Cup Finals.

Trades

Players acquired

Players lost

Signings

Draft picks

Phoenix's draft picks at the 2003 NHL entry draft held at the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville, Tennessee.

Notes

References

References

1. (November 8, 2003). "JOHNSON TO HAVE SURGERY".
2. (September 10, 2003). "COYOTES NAME DOAN CAPTAIN".
3. Adam Kimelman. (December 9, 2009). "Flyers' Boucher knows a thing or two about shutouts".
4. (January 9, 2004). "Five straight shutouts for Boucher". [[ESPN]].
5. "ARI Records".
6. (February 24, 2004). "BOWNESS REPLACES FRANCIS".
7. (October 14, 2004). "Gretzky asked to consider coaching".
8. "2003–04 Phoenix Coyotes Games". Hockey-reference.com.
9. "2004 NHL All-Star Game Rosters".
10. (January 5, 2004). "BOUCHER CAPTURES DEFENSIVE HONORS".
11. (January 12, 2004). "Iginla named NHL's offensive player of the week".
12. (April 3, 2004). "AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED".
13. Arizona Coyotes 2014–2015 Media Guide, p.290
14. "Goaltender Records: Longest Shutout Sequences, Season".
15. "Goaltender Records: Most Consecutive Shutouts, Season".
16. "Team Records: Most Consecutive Shutouts, Season".
17. "2003-04 NHL Debuts".
18. "Hockey Transactions Search Results".
19. (June 21, 2003). "News: 06-21-2003 Coyotes Trade Kicks Off Draft Day".
20. (June 21, 2003). "Sunday swap: 'Canes get Murray from Flyers".
21. (July 22, 2003). "COYOTES ACQUIRE MIKE SILLINGER".
22. (July 25, 2003). "COYOTES ACQUIRE BRYAN HELMER FROM VANCOUVER IN EXCHANGE FOR GRENIER".
23. (December 9, 2003). "COYOTES ACQUIRE DYMENT".
24. (December 30, 2003). "NOVOSELTSEV ACQUIRED".
25. (January 17, 2003). "COYOTES ACQUIRE REIRDEN".
26. (February 9, 2004). "COYOTES ACQUIRE COMRIE".
27. (February 22, 2004). "COYOTES TRADE WILSON".
28. (March 4, 2004). "COYOTES ACQUIRE JOHNSON".
29. (March 5, 2004). "COYOTES ACQUIRE MIKE RUPP".
30. (March 9, 2004). "COYOTES ACQUIRE MORRIS".
31. (March 9, 2004). "SAVAGE TRADED TO ST. LOUIS".
32. (March 9, 2004). "KOIVISTO TO JOIN FALCONS".
33. (July 10, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN HULSE".
34. (July 15, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN CLEARY".
35. (July 17, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN FERRARO TWINS".
36. (July 21, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN NIKOS TSELIOS".
37. (September 23, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN MIKE WILSON".
38. (June 2, 2004). "COYOTES SIGN MONYCH/WOOD".
39. (July 1, 2003). "2003 NHL free agent list".
40. (August 29, 2003). "Penguins sign Berehowsky, Simpson".
41. (June 30, 2003). "Numminen stays with Coyotes".
42. {{eliteprospects. 31355. Paul Ranheim, retrieved May 28, 2022
43. {{eliteprospects. 65188. Ryan Lauzon, retrieved May 28, 2022
44. (July 31, 2003). "C Lemieux to return, Pens agree to terms with five others".
45. (August 5, 2003). "Blackhawks Sign D Deron Quint".
46. (August 26, 2003). "Royals Sign Pair of Ex-Providence Friars".
47. {{hockey-reference. l/leroufr01. Francois Leroux, retrieved May 28, 2022
48. {{eliteprospects. 5873. Peter Fabus, retrieved May 29, 2022
49. (October 3, 2003). "ANAHEIM CLAIMS SIMPSON IN WAIVER DRAFT".
50. (October 3, 2003). "Ice Dogs sign Vandermeer, Sorochan and Zulianello".
51. (October 6, 2003). "Scoreboard".
52. (October 9, 2003). "Pirates' Roster Bolstered On Eve of Regular Season".
53. (October 10, 2003). "Ralph Signs with Bombers, Kiser Assigned from Syracuse".
54. (October 22, 2003). "Kuznetsov Re-Signs with Sea Wolves".
55. (December 1, 2003). "Stingrays Sign First Round Draft Pick".
56. {{hockey-reference. b/banhafr01. Frank Banham, retrieved May 28, 2022
57. "FRANK BANHAM".
58. (April 15, 2004). "Tom Koivisto Frölunda Indiansiin".
59. (June 30, 2003). "News: 06-30-2003 Coyotes & Numminen Agree On One - Year Deal".
60. (July 2, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN HOBEY BAKER FINALIST".
61. (July 7, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN WILSON".
62. (July 14, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN KOREIS".
63. (July 18, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN NASH".
64. (July 28, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN ZAC BIERK TO ONE-YEAR DEAL".
65. (July 31, 2003). "Wheatley: NHL arbitration scoresheet".
66. (August 8, 2003). "LANGKOW AWARDED ONE-YEAR DEAL".
67. (August 9, 2003). "Coyotes Sign Mike Johnson".
68. (August 22, 2003). "Coyotes Sign Tanabe".
69. (August 25, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN GRATTON".
70. (September 8, 2003). "COYOTES SIGN HRDINA".
71. "Erik Westrum: Transactions & Injuries".
72. (February 13, 2004). "DOAN SIGNS EXTENSION".
73. (March 19, 2004). "COYOTES SIGN JOE CALLAHAN TO MULTI-YEAR DEAL".
74. "2003 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com".