The Phoenix Coyotes have announced that former captain Keith Tkachuk and assistant captain Jeremy Roenick will be inducted into the club’s Ring of Honor. Tkachuk will be honored when the Coyotes host the St. Louis Blues on Dec. 23 and Roenick’s night will take place on Feb. 11 when the Coyotes host the Chicago Blackhawks.
Tkachuk (No. 7) and Roenick (No. 97) will become the sixth and seventh players to enter the ring, joining Wayne Gretzky, Bobby Hull, Thomas Steen, Dale Hawerchuk and Teppo Numminen. But they, along with Numminen, are the only ones to have actually played in Coyotes uniforms. More specifically, they all wore the epic “dog on acid” jerseys.
The two newest inductees reflect both parts of the franchise’s history. Tkachuk was a member of the original Jets team (taken 19th overall at the 1990 Entry Draft) and scored 50 goals in the team’s final season in Winnipeg. This isn’t to say Tkachuk didn’t make his mark in Phoenix -- he led the NHL in goals in his first year as a Coyote, edging out both Teemu Selanne and Mario Lemieux.
Roenick, meanwhile, was a full-fledged Coyote. He was the club’s first major acquisition upon moving to Phoenix (traded from Chicago for Alexei Zhamnov and Craig Mills) and led the Coyotes in scoring three seasons while being named an NHL All-Star twice.
“We are very pleased to induct Keith and Jeremy into the Coyotes Ring of Honor,” Coyotes CEO Mike Nealy told the team’s website. “Both Keith and JR were very important and popular players for our organization who helped launch our franchise in the Valley in 1996. They both had incredible careers and are deserving of this honor. We look forward to celebrating their careers with the Coyotes later this season.”