You can’t always just connect with a new place like Shane Doan did when he came to Arizona. But there is actually a deep reason behind everything just clicking from the get-go. “I think Shane being like a cowboy and a ranch guy, coming to Arizona was just the perfect fit for him,” Rich Nairn, the former Coyotes executive vice president, said in 2019 while talking about the winger’s legacy to AZ Central. “He was a great player but also he fell in love with this place. It was his second home. It became his new home.”

But as his legacy was getting more and more intertwined with Arizona, the Arizona people also fell in love with hockey, and the Coyotes became the symbol for the desert state. Though the Coyotes left Arizona last year, efforts to bring the team back have continued. But now those efforts have received a huge boost: Andrea Doan, Shane Doan’s wife, and the face of a fresh new endeavor to bring the team back, will play probably the most important role in bringing the NHL back to Arizona. But she won’t be alone. She already has big help come her way.

On September 23, Cameron Cox, the 12 News anchor, shared a clip on X from the interview they did with Andrea Doan and Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chair Thomas Galvin. There, she spoke about all the various aspects she is focusing on to make it a successful return for the Coyotes. And more importantly, she is adamant they will revive the Arizona Coyotes. Why? Because this is where passion meets the profit.

“I know people love hockey here and are huge Coyotes fans,” Andrea said in the clip. And being the fifth-largest metropolitan area in the nation comes with a vast market for the NHL to explore. Having a team here is a no-brainer. They just have to sort out the ownership and Arena problems. Talking about the support, she said, “The alumni here also is unbelievable. There are so many players that come back here.”

And they are ready to lend Andrea all the support she needs. “They all want to be involved, like they all want to get the team back.” In fact, one ex-Coyote is already making a big show of support. “Keith Yandle’s texting us this morning like, ‘I can’t wait. Come on Spittin’ Chicklets, this is so awesome.’” Well, it wouldn’t be surprising given Yandle’s first team was the Coyotes, and he spent 9 seasons there.

The Spittin’ Chicklets platform would be huge for them to showcase their bid, to connect with a massive NHL fanbase, and get the revival movement proper on track. Mind you, the Spittin’ Chicklets will want the Coyotes to be back; their very own Paul Bissonnette was a Coyotes winger for 4 years. They have so many connections to this operation.

And with her intentions to not just bring the team back but also the Stanley Cup to Arizona, it would get so much mileage on the podcast; it won’t be long before candidates line up for ownership and being the host arena for the Coyotes. That’s the power of broadcast. But Andrea Doan has to spearhead it till the end. She has the all-important Doan connection.

The Shane and Andrea Doan link that has gotten things started

Tom Galvin had made the key decision to set up a committee that would orchestrate the NHL Arizona revival plans. That was almost 9 months ago. Only on Monday, September 22, did he officially decide to make Andrea Doan the chair of that committee. Her connection to being Shane Doan’s wife doesn’t exactly explain her importance in this revival mission. But how she has lived and breathed this sport in Arizona for the last 20+ years puts her in the perfect position to helm this project.

In fact, even Shane Doan himself believes his wife is the person who can successfully oversee this in a way that fulfills the community’s needs while making it a successful business venture for the stakeholders. “She not only saw the game from the professional level, she sees it as a parent and for people that played or got to experience hockey with all the good that it can provide for a family and teaching kids and helping kids and giving them a community outside of just their family or their school. She has the ability to connect all of that,” the Coyotes legend said, according to Arizona Insider.

Andrea Doan had seen her husband go from a fan favorite to a hockey legend for the state. Then she raised her son, Josh Doan, to become a Coyote player. She had lived the previous history of the Coyotes. She knows why it all fell apart. So, Andrea Doan knows what ownership dynamics she needs to look for and which locale would provide the best host arena experience.

Now, it’s all about fast-tracking the process to bring the Arizona Coyotes back in the least possible time, especially with multiple cities vying to be the next franchise that enters the NHL.