Mike Yeo spent five years in Minnesota. He's looking forward to one more day.

The former head coach of the Minnesota Wild, now associate coach with the St. Louis Blues, returns to his old stomping grounds Sunday as the Blues take on the Wild.

It marks Yeo's first trip back to Minnesota's Xcel Energy Center since his time behind the bench was cut short last season.

Still, Yeo is excited to reminisce with familiar faces in the place where he first served as bench boss after years as an assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins organization.

"It's your first head coaching job, and the experience of working with a great organization and great people was something I'll always remember," Yeo told Mike G. Morreale of NHL.com. "To be able to do it in a hockey-mad market was something else. The people were passionate and always respectful.

"At the same time, you knew every day they were thinking and caring about what was going on with the Wild, and that made it fun."

Now with the Blues, Yeo plays a key role under long-time head coach Ken Hitchcock, who is in his final year with the club. Yeo will assume the head coaching duties next season. It was that interaction with Hitchcock that attracted Yeo to the Gateway City.

"Aside from wanting to help the team win this year any way I can, I've got a chance to learn from a Hall of Fame coach and a chance to learn about the group I'll be coaching," Yeo added, "So those are two invaluable tools for me."

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The Arizona Coyotes have bolstered their lineup down the middle.

In acquiring pivot Peter Holland from the Toronto Maple Leafs in a Friday deal, the team strengthened a group which this season has featured veteran Martin Hanzal, winger-turned-center Jordan Martinook, and a host of rookies, namely Christian Dvorak, Laurent Dauphin, and Tyler Gaudet.

"The risk we had going into this season was certainly up the middle of the ice, which isn't ideal, but it's also where we've expended a lot of our resources and key resources to try to acquire those types of players up the middle," Coyotes general manager John Chayka told Sarah McLellan of The Arizona Republic.

The Coyotes were hoping for more from their middle men, but that changed once Brad Richardson, who scored nine points in 16 games, broke his leg in mid-November, and 19-year-old Dylan Strome was returned to junior.

That left the Coyotes with a hole they hope to fill with the addition of Holland, who was looking for a change of his own.

Holland spent the last three seasons with the Maple Leafs, netting a $1.3-million contract extension this summer. But things didn't work out this year, with him appearing in just eight games through the season's quarter mark before asking for a move out of Hogtown.

Arizona sent a conditional sixth-round pick in 2018 to Toronto for Holland.

"This deal was about the proper risk-to-reward ratio," Chayka said. "It was about getting a player who, in limited opportunity and ice time, has been a relatively efficient, productive producer. That was the deal more than anything."

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With injury comes opportunity.

The Arizona Coyotes received a devastating blow Saturday, announcing that winger Max Domi is week to week with an upper-body injury.

For now, the Coyotes will look to the positives, and that means more opportunity for the team's host of young talent. Specifically, lanky winger Brendan Perlini, the team's top pick in the 2014 draft.

A product of Guildford, England, Perlini spent the last four seasons with the OHL's Niagara IceDogs before moving on to the Tucson Roadrunners, the Coyotes' AHL affiliate, this season.

There, Perlini has had an immediate impact, pocketing 11 goals in 16 games before receiving Rookie of the Month honors in November. At the time of his Dec. 4 recall, the rookie pro led all AHLers in goals.

Now with the Coyotes, Perlini has appeared in three games, registering three shots while averaging 14:53 in ice time. While he's yet to find the scoresheet, his blazing speed and blistering shot has impressed.

It's those same attributes that gave Perlini early success in his first season in Tucson.

"I've seen a guy that's grown, a guy that's been very coachable," Roadrunners coach Mark Lamb told Craig Morgan of Arizona Sports. "His two biggest assets are that he has unbelievable speed and he's got an unbelievable shot, and we're seeing both of those pretty much every night in all areas."

Perlini now hopes to showcase that same skill as he shoots for a full-time gig in the NHL.

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Max Pacioretty has no problem with Carey Price's right hook.

The Montreal Canadiens netminder made headlines Thursday after throwing punches into New Jersey Devils forward Kyle Palmieri, who had bumped into Price beforehand.

It was one too many for the franchise goaltender.

"It seems to be the nature of the league; go to the net, run the goalie over, and score a goal. You just gotta stick up for yourself every once in a while," Price said after the game.

Related: Should Price have been ejected for unleashing his blocker on Palmieri?

The Canadiens captain didn't disagree with his goaltender's stance.

"You like to see guys stay away from him," Pacioretty told reporters. "You want to protect the best player in the league and it's nice to see him stand up for himself."

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Darryl Sutter is climbing the ranks.

With a 4-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Saturday, the Los Angeles Kings bench boss claimed his 200th victory in Hollywood.

Sutter trails only Andy Murray for first place in franchise history, a mark he will surely claim later this season:

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Patrik Laine wants to take his show on the road.

The Winnipeg Jets' rookie sensation has thrilled home fans this season, but that same scorer's touch hasn't been present outside of Manitoba.

With 17 goals, he trails only Sidney Crosby and David Pastrnak - both with 18 - for the league lead. Of those 17, though, all but three have come at the MTS Centre.

"I just want to succeed. It doesn't matter if it's home or on the road," Laine told reporters Saturday. "I know that I've scored most of my goals at home games. It's 50/50 home and road games, so you have to be able to produce on the road too."

Heading to Alberta on Saturday to take on the Calgary Flames, Laine will have the opportunity to score his fourth road goal of the season.

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The Arizona Coyotes need more from Anthony Duclair.

The sophomore scorer has struggled through his second season with the Desert Dogs, tallying just four points and a single goal through the team's first 25 games.

While a second-year slump is one thing, Duclair appears to be more than a little snakebitten.

To Coyotes head coach Dave Tippett, the young forward was simply in need of a "reset."

"For a scorer, when they're not scoring, all they think about is scoring," Tippett told Sarah McLellan of The Arizona Republic. "Sometimes you have a little reset, and it kind of gets all the parts of their game back in order and it's amazing how the scoring comes back around."

Duclair, 21, is one of many young players holding down spots with the Coyotes this season. That lists also includes the likes of 21-year-old Max Domi, 19-year-old Lawson Crouse, and 18-year-old blue-liner Jakob Chychrun, among other fresh faces.

"A lot of young players go through it," Tippett continued. "It's nothing new. We've talked about it with our young defensemen already that they just need to take a step back and catch their breath and get reset and go at it. That's no different than Anthony.”

Perhaps Duclair's decline was predictable. After scoring at an unsustainably-high 19 per cent last season, that number has dipped to a lowly 5.6 per cent this year. There's a middle ground in there where Duclair will find goals.

In the meantime, Duclair continues to work on his game to rediscover his scoring touch. Since being scratched Dec. 5 versus the Columbus Blue Jackets, he has appeared in two games, recording one shot, four penalty minutes, but no points.

"I knew it was going to be tougher than last year," Duclair said. "I think last year, coming in, things were going my way almost every game sometimes. Now I just got to work hard for it. It's totally normal coming into your second year. I know I can help my team win. I know I can score goals. It's just a matter of just putting that extra time in."

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The New York Islanders' locker room was all smiles after learning Cal Clutterbuck had signed a five-year extension with the club.

"I'm ecstatic about it," said linemate Casey Cizikas. "We've really jelled well together and we know where each other (is) on the ice at all times. Being on the (penalty) kill together, that makes it so much easier."

Clutterbuck and Cizikas have been key cogs on the Islanders' fourth line over the past few seasons. Forward Matt Martin completed the trio, before signing with the Toronto Maple Leafs in the offseason.

"We've really grown as friends and as linemates over these past years and to have him here for five more years is going to be a lot of fun," Cizikas added.

Head coach Jack Capuano believes Clutterbuck adds tremendous value to his lineup as a player who can always be relied on.

"From a coaching standpoint, you have one of those guys that fits your identity," said Capuano. "I think every coach is looking for that guy that is reliable, that's trustworthy, that can play in key situations, but most importantly, is tough to play against."

Forward Andrew Ladd, who joined the Islanders in the offseason, has already recognized Clutterbuck's contributions to the club.

"I don't think you know how much Cal means to this team until you're here every day," said Ladd. "You see what he contributes on a nightly basis, so I think guys are really happy that he's going to be sticking around for a while."

Clutterbuck has appeared in 25 games with the Islanders this season, scoring nine points along the way, while his 89 hits leads the team and is fifth overall league-wide.

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The New York Islanders' locker room was all smiles after learning Cal Clutterbuck had signed a five-year extension with the club.

"I'm ecstatic about it," said linemate Casey Cizikas. "We've really jelled well together and we know where each other (is) on the ice at all times. Being on the (penalty) kill together, that makes it so much easier."

Clutterbuck and Cizikas have been key cogs on the Islanders' fourth line over the past few seasons. Forward Matt Martin completed the trio, before signing with the Toronto Maple Leafs in the offseason.

"We've really grown as friends and as linemates over these past years and to have him here for five more years is going to be a lot of fun," Cizikas added.

Head coach Jack Capuano believes Clutterbuck adds tremendous value to his lineup as a player who can always be relied on.

"From a coaching standpoint, you have one of those guys that fits your identity," said Capuano. "I think every coach is looking for that guy that is reliable, that's trustworthy, that can play in key situations, but most importantly, is tough to play against."

Forward Andrew Ladd, who joined the Islanders in the offseason, has already recognized Clutterbuck's contributions to the club.

"I don't think you know how much Cal means to this team until you're here every day," said Ladd. "You see what he contributes on a nightly basis, so I think guys are really happy that he's going to be sticking around for a while."

Clutterbuck has appeared in 25 games with the Islanders this season, scoring nine points along the way, while his 89 hits leads the team and is fifth overall league-wide.

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Philadelphia Flyers forward Sean Couturier will be sidelined four-to-six weeks with a lower-body injury, general manager Ron Hextall announced Wednesday. CSN Philly's Tim Panaccio reports the injury is a sprained knee.

Couturier suffered the injury Tuesday versus the Florida Panthers, leaving after just seven minutes of ice time.

The 23-year-old has appeared in all 20 games this season, scoring five goals and collecting three assists.

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