Josh Doan scores twice in NHL debut for Arizona Coyotes

The cheers that followed Josh Doan's solo lap only grew louder throughout the night.

Doan, the son of former Coyotes captain Shane, continued his family legacy with the Coyotes and became the first Arizona-born, raised, and trained player to suit up for the Coyotes. In his NHL debut, Doan sparked the Coyotes with two goals, including the game-winner, in Tuesday's 6-2 rout of the Columbus Blue Jackets at Mullett Arena.

"It was tough to not feel that in the arena tonight," Coyotes coach André Tourigny said. "It was a little bit like a fairytale. He scored two goals, a winning goal, he played really well, and had a chance. I think that's the way life should be. That's beautiful."

Shane played all of his 21 NHL seasons with the Coyotes franchise and was one of the key parts of the team when it moved from Winnipeg to Arizona in 1996. He retired in 2017 as the Coyotes' all-time leader in goals (402), assists (570), points (972) and games played (1,540). Josh's goal in the second period made them the first father-son duo in Coyotes history to score a goal with the team.

With his dad engrained in the Coyotes franchise, Josh Doan has represented Arizona throughout his playing levels. He grew up playing youth hockey with the Jr. Coyotes and eventually committed to Arizona State for NCAA hockey. He helped the grow ASU's program as the captain in his sophomore season and became the third ASU player to make their NHL debut.

"That was something special," Doan said. "Right from the beginning, all the guys made it so unique and special and just made sure I was calm. Before the game, I felt like I was nervous and almost too relaxed and laid back. I had to figure out a way to get my legs into it."

The Coyotes (30-37-5) were eliminated from Stanley Cup Playoffs contention for the 11th time in 12 seasons when the Vegas Golden Knights scored a point in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Nashville Predators.

More: Josh Doan to become first Arizona-born player to play for Arizona Coyotes

Doan's lasting legacy

With cutaways to Shane throughout the game, the evening played out perfectly.

Aside from his dad, Josh was welcomed by a sizable contingent of family and friends. Even with Shane working with the Toronto Maple Leafs as special advisor to the general manager, the family still resides in Scottsdale.

With his No. 91 Coyotes jersey already selling in limited quantities at the arena, Josh Doan’s debut was highly anticipated. Several fans wore his Arizona State jersey or his father’s No. 19 jersey to commemorate the special moment.

Doan played right wing on the third line with left wing Matias Maccelli and center Jack McBain, which fared well as the three combined for four points.

"He played with two guys who played a really good game as well," Tourigny said. "I think it's the best game for Maccelli in a little bit and I think they had a good night."

A goal to remember

Doan holds a brief but rich history with Mullett Arena, now in its second season. While at ASU, Doan was the first player to score a goal in the building on Oct. 14, 2022.

The crowd gasped when Doan went on a breakaway, but was left disappointed when he missed. However, he wasn't done engaging the crowd.

Much like the reaction when he scored the first goal in the building, the crowd erupted when Doan batted his shot mid-air in front of goaltender Elvis Merzlikins into the net for his first NHL goal. The goal, which was unassisted, gave the Coyotes a 2-1 lead at 16:33 of the second period. The celebration of him raising his hands to the air and hit the glass mirrored that of when he scored at ASU.

"I was pretty frustrated with myself on the first one because I missed a breakaway right before and my dad partially was about to walk away because he knew how upset I would be," Doan said. "Then fortunately it came right back out in front and I just had to get a piece of it because it was right in the air and it went in over the glove."

With the game tied in the third, Doan and Maccelli connected for another massive goal. Parked in front of the net, Doan artfully tipped in Maccelli’s shot into the net for a 3-2 lead at 11:32 in the third. From there, a flurry of goals followed, including a shorthanded goal from Nick Schmaltz on an assist by goaltender Karel Vejmelka.

Closing the night out

Doan came close to earning his first career hat trick, something his dad took 1,161 games to accomplish. The Coyotes even made adjustments to help Doan, including when Schmaltz took a shorter shift in the third.

The parade for Doan didn't end after the game as he spent nearly an hour doing media interviews and meeting with family, friends, and former ASU teammates. One of the more special moments came when Shane joined Josh in his post-game TV interview and presented him with his first NHL goal puck.

"It's something special to receive your first NHL goal puck from your dad and to share a moment with him," Josh Doan said. "Everything's he done for me and to help guide me through this game and the ins and outs and battles off the ice that comes with the game and to have him give me that first puck is something I'll never forget."

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Josh Doan, son of Shane Doan, scores twice in Arizona Coyotes debut