Auston Matthews may be the prodigal son of Arizona hockey, but there is no arguing that Josh Doan has hockey royalty in the state running through his blood.
This week, finally, there is something for hockey collectors to grab. Topps Now has included Doan in the Topps Now sticker #156 pack. The $9.99 pack of five stickers is available until April 4 at 4:30 p.m. EDT. It is the first Doan NHL collectible to hit the market.
The caption at the bottom of the sticker reads, “Son of Coyotes legend scores twice in NHL debut.” He became the first player in Coyotes history to score two or more goals in his NHL debut.
Doan, 22, is the son of Shane Doan, widely considered the best player in Arizona Coyotes history. Doan spent his entire 21-year career with the Coyotes, becoming captain of the team in the 2003-04 season. He retired in 2017 with 402 goals and 570 assists for 972 points in 1,540 games. He also had 1,353 minutes in penalties. He later joined the team’s front office.
Josh Doan grew up around his father’s team and grew up playing hockey in the Phoenix Jr. Coyotes program. No one was a bigger Coyotes fan than Josh Doan, who would even livestream the team’s rookie development camp in his bedroom.
Josh Doan was drafted to play junior hockey by the Chicago Steel of the USHL. He had a pedestrian five goals and nine assists in 45 games, resulting of him being overlooked in the 2020 NHL Draft. He was also labelled as too light to play in the NHL.
Doan used it as motivation and had 31 goals and 39 assists for 70 points in 53 games the following year.
When the 2021 NHL Draft came along, Doan was on the radar. The Coyotes selected him in the second round. In a well-known exchange from that draft, Coyotes GM Bill Armstrong told Shane Doan, “We’re picking your son because of his ability, not his last name.”
Doan joined the Arizona State Sun Devils hockey team in 2021. He continued to develop offensively with 37 points in 35 games as an NCAA freshman. The Sun Devils moved into the new Mullett Arena in 2021. In the first game there, Doan became the first player to ever score a goal in the arena.
Over two season, Doan had 75 points in 74 games. After his sophomore season he decided to turn pro, signing with the Coyotes. He played the final 14 games of the AHL season with the Tucson Roadrunners, netting six points in 14 games.
This year, in his first full pro season, Doan scored 26 goals and had 20 assists for 46 points in 62 games. He was leading all AHL rookies in goals when he was called up to the Coyotes late last month.
It was only fitting that Doan, back in Mullett Arena but this time playing for the Coyotes, would score his first NHL goal there. He scored a pair of goals against Columbus, including the game-winner, in a 6-2 win over Columbus. In his second NHL game, he assisted on two goals.
While collectors went searching for Doan cards, they came up empty. Even Rangers rookie tough guy Matt Rempe had some junior cards. But for Doan, there were no junior cards, development cards, draft cards – nothing. As of early Tuesday, he didn’t even have a photo next to his name on the team’s online roster. His best chance to appear on a traditional pack pulled card is in next year’s Upper Deck MVP and/or Upper Deck Series 1 Young Guns.
Even after his two-goal debut, he had to wait until the next cycle of Topps Now stickers before he had anything to collect.
By this time next season, there will likely be hundreds of different Doan cards, variations included.
But for now, collectors will have to be patient, just like Doan was on his path to the NHL.
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Notes: Fanatics Mosaic Drop; Topps Now for Greene, Suzuki, Balkovec; LeBron, Mantle Pace Goldin
Sports Card Release Calendar: 5/15/24-6/4/24
