SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Raffi Torres will return from a 21-game suspension this weekend.
When he does, the gritty Phoenix Coyotes left wing hopes to be a different player.
Torres was suspended after a blindside hit on Chicago’s Marian Hossa during last year’s playoffs, leading to the second-longest on-ice suspension in NHL history.
When Torres returns to the ice Saturday night against Dallas, the 31-year-old will do it with a different mindset, hoping to maintain his ferocity but without the suspensions that have come with it in the past.
With the help of Coyotes coach Dave Tippett, Torres spent his time off the ice working on ways to still deliver big hits, but to do it with the intention of knocking the player off the puck, not out of the game.
