Top 10 Best Arizona Coyotes Players of All Time

Known initially as the Winnipeg Jets at their founding in 1979, the Arizona Coyotes have been around for 43 seasons. After their stint as the Jets, the Arizona Coyotes shifted to the name of Phoenix Coyotes until settling with Arizona. Read on to learn more about the greatest players who made the Arizona Coyotes who they are today.

Who Are the Best Arizona Coyotes Hockey Players of All Time?

1. Shane Doan
2. Keith Tkachuk
3. Jeremy Roenick
4. Oliver Ekman-Larsson
5. Teemu Selänne
6. Teppo Numminen
7. Keith Yandle
8. Radim Vrbata
9. Clayton Keller
10. Phil Housley

1. Shane Doan

• Arizona Coyotes retired number (19)
• Six-time Arizona Coyotes leading scorer
• Two-time All-Star Game selection 

Shane Doan is the most decorated Arizona Coyote of all time. Doan has 972 points, 570 assists, 402 goals, and 1540 games played to his name. With an average of 0.269 points, 0.382 assists, and 0.651 points per game over his decorated career, Doan dominated the ice.

As one of the most influential forwards to ever play the game, Doan put up incredible numbers. Furthermore, Doan was an exceptional leader. He won the King Clancy Memorial Trophy and the Mark Messier Leadership Award due to his work ethic and strong sense of leadership and fellowship. Doan played 21 seasons and remained loyal to the Arizona Coyotes in every single one of them, only taking breaks to play for his home country (Canada) in World Championships.

2. Keith Tkachuk

• Two-time NHL Second All-Star Team
• Five-time All-Star Game selection
• Coyotes Ring of Honor
• Two-time Coyotes leading scorer

Keith Tkachuk was an absolute monster on the ice. He racked up numerous awards due to his grit and desire to win. As far as hockey skills go, Tkachuk may have Doan beat. Though he has only 334 points, 155 assists, and 179 goals, he was arguably the most effective NHL player on the Coyotes of all time because he only played 332 games. That is an average of 0.539 goals, 0.467 assists, and 1.006 points per game played. That means that the famous forward provided the means for his team to score a goal in every game he was in.

Also, he impressively held a higher average of goals per game than assists per game. While Tkachuk dominated the ice more than any other player on this list, Doan is still the top ranked player due to his consistency, longevity, impact on and off the ice, and fame.

3. Jeremy Roenick

• Nine-time All-Star Game selection
• United States Hockey Hall of Fame inductee
• Coyotes Ring of Honor
• Three-time Coyotes leading scorer

Jeremy Roenick was an American forward that played for the Arizona Coyotes in the late 1990s and early 2000s. He played 454 games, scored 152 goals, made 227 assists, and has 379 points. He, like Tkachuk, was incredibly impactful in each game he played, averaging 0.835 points per game.

Roenick was a sharpshooter. He is one of the most accurate Coyotes to have played the game, holding an overall shot percentage of 14.0. Furthermore, Roenick participated in 4,596 Faceoffs and won 49.67% of the time: one of the best faceoffs win percentages by a Coyote.

While his stats speak for themselves, Roenick did much more than put up big numbers. He won Man of the Year two years in a row. His coaches loved him because of his tremendous leadership, strong sense of character, and hockey IQ.

4. Oliver Ekman-Larsson

• Two-time All-Star Game selection
• Two-time Coyotes leading scorer
• Three-time Coyotes Man of the Year
• Three-time Coyotes Team MVP

Oliver Ekman-Larsson is the best defenseman to ever play for the Arizona Coyotes. He joined the team in 2010 and stayed with them until 2021. While playing for the Coyotes, Ekman-Larsson had 128 goals, 260 assists, and 388 points overall in 769 games.

Though he did not average many points per game played, Ekman-Larsson was impactful in many other ways. After he joined the Coyotes, they went to the playoffs three years in a row, even reaching the Western Conference finals in 2012. Furthermore, he has won the Man of the Year award more times than any other Arizona Coyote and has more Team MVPs than anybody other than Shane Doan. Finally, keep in mind that Ekman-Larsson is still playing the game. He accomplished all of the above achievements at a very young age: he was born in 1991.

5. Teemu Selänne

• Calder Memorial Trophy winner
• NHL All-Rookie Team
• Two-time NHL First All-Star Team
• Ten-time All-Star Game selection
• 2017 Hockey Hall of Fame inductee

Teemu Selänne was a right-wing who played for the Arizona Coyotes when they were the Winnipeg Jets from 1992 to 1996. Selänne has 684 goals, 773 assists, and 1457 points over his 1451 games. Therefore, he averaged more than one point per game. While he does have more goals, assists, and points than Shane Doan (or anybody else on this list), he jumped around to many different teams during his 21-year career, spending most of his time with Anaheim.

Due to his many years playing with other teams, we place Selänne lower on this list than his stats imply. However, his impressive career could not be overlooked. He left an indelible mark on the Coyotes’ history during his four-year stint with the Winnipeg Jets. For example, Selänne holds a Coyotes record for goals per game (0.64), points per game (1.32), and goals created per game (0.53).

6. Teppo Numminen

• Three-time NHL All-Star Game selection
• Coyotes Ring of Honor
• #1 in Defensive Point Shares All-Time
• Scored 20 game-winning goals

Teepo Numminen was a defenseman who played from 1988 to 2009. Numminen spent his first 15 years with the Arizona Coyotes as an irreplaceable defensive asset. However, Numminen’s value lay in the fact that he could play both sides of the ice. In his 1,372 games, he scored 117 goals, 520 assists, and 637 points. 

To date, Numminen holds a Coyotes’ record for most Defensive Point Shares at 57.2. On the flip side, he holds nearly double that in Offensive Point Shares with 108.9. Numminen’s 15 years as a Coyote make him one of the team’s longest-tenured members. Over his decorated career, Numminen remained clutch on defense and offense, providing the means for his team to perform well.

7. Keith Yandle

• Three-time All-Star Game selection
• Two-time Coyotes leading scorer
• Beth Champie Memorial Award winner
• Second-longest NHL ironman streak

Keith Yandle was born in 1986 and grew up to play for the Arizona Coyotes as a defenseman. He scored 65 goals and made 246 assists for a total of 311 points over 558 games played. Though Yandle does not boast impressive stats with the Arizona Coyotes as compared to his counterparts, none of them have anything on his grit. He holds the second-longest NHL record for consecutive games played (Ironman Streak) at 989. Holding the longest Ironman Streak is considered one of the most difficult accomplishments in hockey because playing that many consecutive games can be hard on the body. However, Yandle powered through his seasons, not missing nearly 1,000 consecutive games.

8. Radim Vrbata

• 2016-2017 Coyotes leading scorer
• 2016-2017 Coyotes Team MVP
• #8 All-Time for Coyotes in goals scored

A Czech right winger, Radim Vrbata played seven seasons with the Arizona Coyotes on and off during the years of 2007 to 2017. He started his career in the NHL in 1997 and played until 2018, nearly finishing his hockey career as a Coyote. Vrbata played 509 games, scored 157 goals, made 186 assists, and got 343 points as an Arizona Coyote. He held an impressive 0.308 goals per game, 0.365 assists per game, and 0.674 points per game.

Vrbata probably played for the most teams of all the players on this list. Over his 21 years as a hockey professional, he played for the Colorado Avalanche, Carolina Hurricanes, Bílí Tygři Liberec, Chicago Blackhawks, Arizona Coyotes, Tampa Bay Lightning, Mladá Boleslav, Vancouver Canucks, and the Florida Panthers.

9. Clayton Keller

• NHL All-Rookie Team
• Three-time All-Star Game selection
• Two-time Coyotes leading scorer

Clayton Keller is an American forward born in 1998. He has 442 games played with the Coyotes. During those games, he has 133 goals, 209 assists, and 342 points overall. He boasts an impressive 0.301 goals per game, 0.473 assists per game, and 0.774 points per game. He keeps an 11.9% shot accuracy and wins 40.28% of his faceoffs. 

Keller entered the NHL in 2016 and remains playing to this day. Since he has not been playing for very long, we do not put him very high on this list. But, due to his impressive showing so far, that could surely change. However, he suffered a leg injury in 2022, which could impact his future performance.

10. Phil Housley

• Seven-time All-Star Game selection
• 2015 Hockey Hall of Fame inductee
• NHL All-Rookie Team

Like Teemu Selänne, Phil Housley spent most of his career playing for other teams. However, his three years with the Winnipeg Jets (Arizona Coyotes) cannot be forgotten. In fact, Housely holds a Coyotes’ record for assists per game at 0.84. Housley began his career in 1982 and played until 2003. 

Though he played for most of his career as a Sabre, he left his mark on the Coyotes by being proficient at setting up goals and making assists. Additionally, he holds a total of 73.9 Defensive Point Shares, which is more than the Coyotes record-holder Teppo Numminen. However, since Housley only spent three years with the Coyotes (formerly the Jets), he is not given the Coyotes’ Defensive Point Shares record.

Honorable Mentions

• Mikkel Bødker
• Jakob Chychrun
• Lawson Crouse
• Mike Johnson
• Ed Jovanovski
• Nikolai Khabibulin
• Daymond Langkow
• Derek Morris
• Ladislav Nagy
• Nick Schmaltz

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