Fiesta Bowl names retired Coyotes captain Shane Doan as grand marshal
Sep 11, 2017, 9:53 AM | Updated: 11:28 am
PHOENIX — Retired Arizona Coyotes captain Shane Doan was named the Fiesta Bowl Parade’s next grand marshal on Monday.
And the 47th Annual @NBAZInteractive Fiesta Bowl Parade Grand Marshal is….Shane Doan! pic.twitter.com/FJbQJFD0hD
— Fiesta Bowl (@Fiesta_Bowl) September 11, 2017
“The Fiesta Bowl Parade is an Arizona icon and I’m honored to serve as this year’s grand marshal,” Doan said in a press release. “During my playing career, I never had the chance to experience the Fiesta Bowl Parade and, for my first one, it’ll be incredible to lead the way.”
This year’s PlayStation Fiesta Bowl Parade was scheduled to roll through Phoenix on Dec. 30.
Doan joins a long list of notable Arizona sports figures to serve as grand marshal, including Arizona Diamondbacks ace Randy Johnson, Phoenix Suns forward Charles Barkley and Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner.
“Doan has been a first-class ambassador for the state of Arizona throughout his career, both on and off the ice,” Mike Nealy, the bowl’s executive director, said in the release.
“He is the perfect choice to be grand marshal for this year’s parade as he represents the values of the Fiesta Bowl organization.”
Other notables to serve as parade grand marshal include John Glenn, a former U.S. senator and first American to orbit the Earth.
Doan spent his entire 21-year with the Coyotes before the team opted not to re-sign its captain in the offseason.
The team was criticized for the way Doan was let go and owner Andrew Barroway later apologized for it.
Doan decided to call it a career late last month, despite interest from several National Hockey League teams. He told 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station’s John Gambadoro that he did not want to uproot his family for what would likely be a diminished role on the ice.
The former captain said he has a couple things in the works now that he’ll be spending his time off the ice, including pursuing a job somewhere in the NHL.
He also said he plans to keep cheering for the team he once led.
“We are legitimate fans … The guys they brought in, I’m excited to see what they do,” he told the Burns and Gambo show on 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station.
Doan retired as the team’s all-time leader in games played (1,540), shots (3,945), goals (402), assists (570), points (972), power-play goals (128) and game-winning goals (69).
Arizona Sports’ Kevin Zimmerman and Matt Layman contributed to this report.
