 After playing three seasons in the Western Hockey League, Focht joined the Coyotes' American Hockey League affiliate, the Springfield Falcons, for the 1997–98 season.He did not make his NHL debut with the Coyotes, however, until the 2001–02 season, during which he appeared in eight games.After playing in ten more games for the Coyotes in the 2002–03 season, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in a multi-player deal which saw Jan Hrdina go to Phoenix.