Tucson, Arizona – The Tucson Roadrunners are proud to announce that Curtis Douglas has been named the team’s winner of the IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year award for his outstanding contributions to the Tucson community during the 2024-25 season.
Douglas is now one of 32 finalists for the AHL’s 2024-25 Yanick Dupré Memorial Award, honoring the overall IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year. The league award is named after the former Hershey Bears forward and AHL All-Star who died in 1997 following a 16-month battle with leukemia. The winner of the Yanick Dupré Memorial Award will be announced by the American Hockey League later this month.
Now in its fourth year, the initiative is rooted in a cause that holds deep personal meaning for Douglas.
“You truly never know what someone is going through,” Douglas wrote in his March Mullets 4 Mental Health GoFundMe bio. “Mental health is such a difficult and uncomfortable topic to discuss, but these conversations need to be had and can impact a person’s life in such a powerful way. Even if it’s a little thing like checking in on them and seeing how they are really doing.”
In addition to raising funds, Douglas brings visibility to the cause by wearing a signature mullet throughout March—shaving the sides of his head to spark conversations and raise awareness. That visibility is central to his campaign’s hashtag, #AskMeAboutMyMullet.
“It just kind of starts this conversation surrounding mental health,” Douglas said during an appearance on the Roadrunners Happy Hour podcast. “That was the main goal—to start conversations that are somewhat uncomfortable and sometimes tricky. But you never really know how much the person you’re talking to needed that moment.”
Douglas says the mullet often draws questions—and every one of those questions opens a door.
“Sometimes those little conversations, just being there for someone, listening, supporting them… that can really, tremendously impact someone’s life in a positive way,” he added. “I do have the stupid mullet going on, but it’s for a good cause.”
Photo: Kate Dibildox / Tucson Roadrunners
The 25-year-old Oakville, Ontario native has made an impact both off and on the ice in Tucson. Now in his third season with the Roadrunners, Douglas has appeared in 168 games, totaling 59 points (24g, 35a) and a franchise-record 382 penalty minutes.
This season has been his strongest yet in Southern Arizona, with 23 points (10g, 13a) in 61 games—his second-highest single-season total behind his 34-point (13g, 21a) campaign with the Toronto Marlies in 2021-22.
Across six AHL seasons with Tucson, Toronto, and Belleville, Douglas has collected 97 points (37g, 60a) in 259 career games. The 6-foot-9, 242-pound forward was originally selected by the Dallas Stars in the fourth round (106th overall) of the 2018 NHL Draft.
This marks Douglas’ first IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year nomination, making him the sixth Roadrunner player in franchise history to earn the honor.
All-Time Roadrunners Yanick Dupré Memorial Award Nominees
2024-25: Curtis Douglas 2023-24: Cameron Hebig 2022-23: Bokondji Imama 2021-22: Bokondji Imama 2020-21: Athletic trainers of all 31 teams due to the COVID-19 pandemic (Roadrunners Head Athletic Trainer Bill Nervig) 2019-20: Hudson Fasching 2018-19: Dakota Mermis 2017-18: Dakota Mermis 2016-17: Brandon Burlon
//www.tucsonroadrunners.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Untitled-1-10.jpg400450Chase Clemens//www.tucsonroadrunners.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Roadrunners-Wordmark-on-Dark-300x84.pngChase Clemens2025-04-15 11:15:002025-04-14 15:02:28Curtis Douglas Named Roadrunners Man of the Year
