Burmistrov eager to show Coyotes what he’s made of

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This article was published 17/01/2017 (3180 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Alex Burmistrov’s time with the Arizona Coyotes has been brief, but he’s eager to seize the opportunity he’s been given.

The 25-year-old centre, claimed on waivers from the Winnipeg Jets Jan. 2, will play his second game in a Coyotes jersey tonight when Arizona visits the MTS Centre.

“Yeah, it’s (been) good,” Burmistrov said following practice Tuesday afternoon. “I started playing hockey. It’s been a while. I’m happy to be here and playing hockey.”

Burmistrov, seldom used in Winnipeg this season, made an impression in his debut with the Coyotes Monday night, getting 17:58 of ice time — including 3:07 on the power play — and registered an assist in Arizona’s 3-1 loss to the Edmonton Oilers.

“It’s always nice, but we lost the game so I’m not concentrating on my own points right now,” said Burmistrov, whose last game action prior to that came on Dec. 6.

“I’m on a new team and I’ve gotta help the team win a game.”

Visa issues delayed Burmistrov’s arrival with this new team.

“We’ve gotta get him up and going here,” Coyotes head coach Dave Tippett said. “He’s missed a lot of time. He’ll add skill to our group.

“He hasn’t played in a long time. Last night was his first game since probably the (beginning) of December. Between the time he had sitting out here and also the time it took to get him a visa to get down there, he missed a lot of time.”

Tippett is hopeful Burmistrov will earn a permanent spot in the lineup.

“We’ll see what he can do,” Tippett said. “Sometimes when a young player like that, they change opportunities and it clicks in for them. Some work out, some don’t.

“We’ll see how it goes.”

Noteworthy

Nine players from Manitoba are among the prospects expected to be rated when NHL Central Scouting releases its mid-season rankings today.

Centres Nolan Patrick (Brandon Wheat Kings), Cody Glass (Portland Winterhawks) and Stelio Mattheos (Brandon Wheat Kings), all of Winnipeg, are expected to be first-round selections at the 2017 NHL Draft.

Patrick began the 2016-017 season as the No. 1-overall prospect.

Other likely to be ranked include right-winger Nick Henry (Regina Pats) of Portage la Prairie, defenceman Josh Brook (Moose Jaw Warriors) of Roblin, centre Colt Conrad (Western Michigan University) of St. Alphonse, right-winger Brett Davis (Kootenay Ice) of Oakbank, centre Morgan Geekie (Tri-City Americans) of Strathclair and Ty Lewis (Brandon Wheat Kings) of Brandon.

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @sawa14