The player who checks in at No. 13 on the Chicago Wolves’ Top 40 Goal-scorers Countdown, presented by Jewel-Osco, earned everything he got during his pro career and wound up ranked fifth all-time in Wolves’ regular-season games.
Though he earned MVP honors in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (in 1998-99) and twice was the leading scorer on terrific University of Denver squads (2001-02 and 2002-03), Kevin Doell was never drafted by an NHL team. He wasn’t an immediate hit at the AHL level.
The 5-foot-11, 190-pound center from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, started his climb to professional success at the ECHL level. He earned the league’s Rookie of the Year award in 2003-04, which earned him eight regular-season games with the Wolves along with one postseason appearance.
He broke camp with the Wolves in 2004-05 and played 45 games for that dominant team, but he finished his season in the ECHL while the Wolves reached the Calder Cup Finals.
By 2005-06, Doell would not be denied. He developed into a crucial component of the Wolves’ next three teams as he piled up 47 goals and 70 assists in 226 regular-season games. He played in all 24 postseason games and contributed four goals and five assists as the Wolves captured the 2008 Calder Cup championship. Doell also appeared in eight games with the NHL’s Atlanta Thrashers during the 2007-08 season.
(Doell also carved out a spot in the Wolves record book that seems unlikely to be broken. On Dec. 15, 2007, he scored three goals in a 77-second span to set the mark for the franchise’s fastest hat trick. With the score 3-1 in the second period, Doell notched a power-play goal at 2:40, an even-strength goal at 2:48 and scored on a penalty shot at 3:57 to trigger a 10-2 victory.)
After spending the 2008-09 season playing in Sweden, Doell returned to Chicago in 2009-10 and produced 16 more goals. Then he spent a year in Finland before coming back for his Wolves swan song in 2011-12. Though he suffered through an injury-plagued regular season that limited him to 17 games, Doell saved his best for last as he delivered two goals and four assists in five postseason contests.
He closed out his Wolves career ranked fifth all-time in games played (375). He stands 13th in goals (69), 13th in assists (106) and 12th in points (175). These days, Doell puts his University of Denver degree in Finance to good use as an Options and Futures trader in Chicago. He also serves as the hockey director for the Chicago Stallions youth hockey organization.
Want to enjoy more of the countdown?
No. 40: Gage Quinney
No. 39: Tim Breslin
No. 38: Nathan Oystrick
No. 37: Ben Simon
No. 36: Curtis McKenzie
No. 35: Kamil Piros
No. 34: Mark Mancari
No. 33: Simon Gamache
No. 32: Guy Larose
No. 31: Wade Megan
No. 30: Shane Harper
No. 29: Michael Davies
No. 28: Karl Stewart
No. 27: Cory Larose
No. 26: Pat Cannone
No. 25: Brian Wiseman
No. 24: Colin Stuart
No. 23: Brian Noonan
No. 22: Tim Bergland
No. 21: Joey Crabb
No. 20: Jordan Lavallee-Smotherman
No. 19: Dan Currie
No. 18: Dan Plante
No. 17: Bob Nardella
No. 16: Brandon Pirri
No. 15: Steve Martins
No. 14: Spencer Machacek
