Doan Explains Why He Wore No. 19

GLENDALE - Former Coyotes captain Shane Doan returned to Gila River Arena on Monday afternoon to answer questions from reporters about the team's recently announced plan to retire his No. 19 during the 2018-19 season.
Doan's number will be the first in the nearly 40-year history of the franchise to be retired on Feb. 24, 2019, before a home game vs. the Winnipeg Jets.
Doan, of course, played 1,540 games for the Coyotes, but did you know he wore No. 19 for only 1,531 of those games?
It's true.

The Winnipeg Jets, who relocated to Arizona in 1996 and became the Phoenix Coyotes, assigned Doan sweater No. 21 during training camp of his rookie season in 1995. It was pretty close to No. 19, which Doan had worn in junior hockey for the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League. Doan couldn't wear No. 19 for the Jets because forward Nelson Emerson was wearing it and Doan, just happy to be in an NHL training camp, wasn't about to make waves and ask a veteran for his junior number. But then, as fate would have it, the Jets traded Emerson to the Hartford Whalers during camp and the team 's equipment manager asked Doan if he'd like to switch to No. 19.

"I didn't think I was going to make the team in camp so I was like 'Whoa, I'm not changing my number before they cut me,'" Doan recalled on Monday. "I said if I make it to nine games in the NHL, I'll switch after my ninth game. So, for my first nine games I wore No. 21 and then on the 10th game I switched to No. 19. (But) on a bunch of my rookie cards I have No. 21."
Doan wore No. 19 for Kamloops simply because he chose it over No. 28 before his first season. He said those were the only two numbers the Blazers made available to him and Bob Maudie, the two youngest players. Maudie, the youngest on the team, lobbied for No. 28 so Doan graciously forfeited his seniority over Maudie and accepted No. 19 without fuss or incident.
"(Maudie) really wanted 28, and I was like 'Either of them is fine by me,'" Doan said. "Scott Niedermayer had No. 28 the year before (us) and I definitely didn't want to wear his number because he was a legend in Kamloops and still is. I didn't want to wear that number so I got 19. And then once I got it, obviously you look at the number and you start (realizing) Stevie Yzerman and Joe Sakic and Brendan Shanahan were wearing it at that time. There were a bunch of guys that were wearing it in the league so it was pretty cool."
Doan said he's looking forward to his number retirement ceremony in February and getting to thank the fans. He warmed up on Sunday by thanking those who attended a ceremony at Ice Den Scottsdale that was staged to officially name the facility's west rink in Doan's honor.

"That was pretty special for me because I'm a big believer in the grassroots of hockey in Arizona and wanting it to continue to grow like it's growing now," Doan said. "It's a huge honor and I was blown away by it … The Ice Den itself is such a cool spot for my family. My son plays there. My daughter figure skated (there). My other daughter played hockey for like three months and then my younger son played until he was nine. So we've all went through there. It's a big part of our family."

Doan told reporters he misses competing in the NHL, but he doesn't miss the physical pain that accompanies an 82-game hockey season.
"The best part is reaching into your pockets and not having sore hands," Doan said with a smile. "When you play your hands are always sore."
Before Monday's 26-minute press conference ended, Doan was asked if he could identify a favorite moment during his lengthy NHL career. Without much hesitation, he said it came when he was sitting on the bench inside United Center in Chicago during Game 6 of the 2012 Western Conference quarterfinal series vs. the Blackhawks when he realized his team was going to beat Chicago and advance beyond the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 1987.

"They were out-shooting us so bad, it wasn't even funny," Doan said. "It was embarrassing. 'Smitty' (Mike Smith) was so good and then Gilbert Brule scored, and Ray Whitney and I turned to each other and were like 'We're getting out-shot 28-8 but I think we're going to win.' And then we scored again right away and again, and we were up 4-0 within five minutes of that … I had been trying and trying and trying (to advance in the playoffs) and been disappointed so many times. It wasn't like an unbelievable moment, but it was one of those things I'll never forget; sitting there thinking 'Finally!' That was cool."