15Dec/089:02 AM

Top 25 Phoenix Sports Stories of 2008 - #19 - Coyotes trade for Olli Jokinen

By Vince Marotta

Here at Fanster.com, we’ll be spending the last few weeks of 2008 counting down the biggest sports stories in the Valley over the last 12 months.

In the midst of a 6-year playoff drought (which is almost unheard of in the NHL), the Phoenix Coyotes pulled off a major trade on draft night. Wayne Gretzky’s team picked up former Florida Panthers’ captain Olli Jokinen in exchange for defensemen Keith Ballard and Nick Boynton. The deal for O.J., who had scored 111 goals in his previous 3 years in Florida, was designed to shake up the Coyotes’ offense, which had struggled in recent seasons. Jokinen has 10 goals and 11 assists in his first 24 games as a Coyote, despite missing two weeks with a shoulder injury. The offense has picked up a little lately, as the Desert Dogs have lit the lamp 26 times in their last 7 games.