Wild at Coyotes
it’s more for them.
“It’s kind of like a funeral. The funeral’s not really for the guy in the box. It’s for the people saying goodbye to him.”
Reaching that conclusion will be the hardest part for Doan, Andrea believes.
“I don’t think it matters how long you’ve played the game,” she said. “I think sometimes it seems like, ‘Oh, well you’ve had a great career and it’s been over 20 years.’ But when you’re in the situation at this level and you love what you do as much as he does, it’s always going to be tough and emotional. (But) he’s definitely ready for the next phase, for sure. He’s not upset about that.”
About 40 to 50 friends and family members, including Doan’s parents, brother, sister and their families, will be in attendance Saturday, and the potential significance isn’t lost on Doan as he acknowledged he’ll default to soaking in the experience.
Whether he adds to his legacy or this game puts a bow on it, Doan has made an extraordinary impact on the Coyotes and Arizona to cement his status as one of the Valley’s most beloved athletes.
He’s surpassed 1,500 games and 400 goals and is one of only nine players in NHL history to log at least 21 seasons with the same organization. He owns the franchise records for games played, goals, assists, points, game-winners and power-play goals. When: 6 p.m. Where: Gila River Arena. TV/radio: Fox Sports Arizona-Plus/KTAR-AM (620). Coyotes update: Winger Radim Vrbata is approaching Saturday’s season finale as exactly what it is, the last game of 2016-17, because the 35-year-old has decided he wants to continue playing. “There wasn’t just one day where I said, ‘OK, you’re playing,’” Vrbata said Friday. “It was more throughout the season, the feeling was that I can still do this and continue and be important to the team in some way and just enjoy being around the guys and around the people that are around the team. Then we talked as a family what we want to do. The oldest (son) wants me to play, so that had something to do with it. And, yeah, we just feel like we have one more year in us.” Wild update: The Wild have locked up the second seed in the Central Division and sit at 104 points with one game to go. Minnesota has won three in a row, most recently opening its final two-game road trip with a 4-3 win over Colorado on Thursday. More online: Visit coyotes.azcentral.com for Dan Bickley’s take on how Coyotes fans should thank Shane Doan.