Shane Doan: Coyotes' Captain Should Relocate to NY Rangers for 2012

As much as Shane Doan loves playing for the Phoenix Coyotes, he'd be better off finishing his career in New York playing for the Rangers.

The captain has said he won't be making any decisions until after a July 9 city vote that will determine whether or not the franchise can get ownership in place, according to AZCentral.com.

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Doan's camp feels it will have a clearer understanding of the Coyotes possible future in Glendale by July 9 because that's when the city says signatures are due for a possible referendum on prospective owner Greg Jamison's lease agreement.

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It's clear that Doan's heart is in Phoenix, and who can blame him? He's spent the last 15 years with the Coyotes, and it's always hard to leave a situation like that. 

The Coyotes don't have the same kind of year-in, year-out playoff-contending roster as the Rangers, though. Yes, they won their division last year for the first time in franchise history, and there's always the hope that they can continue playing at that high level, but the Rangers are in the thick of it every year.

Doan doesn't have a whole lot of gas left in the tank, and what little he has left should be spent with a championship contender. The Rangers want to bring him in too, according to Larry Brooks of the New York Post:

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Having signed Phoenix depth forward Taylor Pyatt late yesterday to a two-year contract worth $1.55 million per, the Rangers will be in the hunt for top-six winger Shane Doan if the Coyotes’ captain decides to leave Phoenix via free agency, several sources have told The Post.

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This boils down to a battle between sentiment and reason. 

Either Doan chooses to end his career in the place where he made a name for himself, hoping against hope that the Coyotes can improve upon their franchise-best 2012 season, or he decides to end his career in a place where a championship is the expectation every year.

He would be better off leaving his long-time home to seek the title that has eluded him thus far in his career. He needs to go to New York.

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