With the newest set of captains in Mikael Granlund (Anaheim Ducks), Connor Bedard (Chicago Blackhawks), Drew Doughty (Los Angeles Kings), Bo Horvat (New York Islanders), Macklin Celebrini (San Jose Sharks), and Robert Thomas (St. Louis Blues) all being named this past off season, I figured I would take a look at who I predict will be the next captains for the five teams without a captain.
Up first are the Boston Bruins, which have already openly stated that the team would name a captain before opening night — but who could that be? My guess is Czech veteran David Pastrnak. Now, some fans think it could be Charlie McAvoy, but if you look at it on a team-wise standpoint, Pastrnak has already worn the “C” early in his career in a preseason game, and it would only make sense as he’s one of the longest tenured Bruins currently, having spent his entire career in Boston.
Next, for the Columbus Blue Jackets, I believe the newest captain will be Zach Werenski, coming off a Norris-winning season as the league’s best defenseman on top of being one of the longest tenured players on the Blue Jackets. However, the team may go in a different direction, giving captaincy to a player like Mathieu Olivier who has been a huge veteran presence as well. On top of this, Werenski did request a trade over the off season, but changed his mind, deciding to stay with Columbus for the foreseeable future.
The third team without a captain is the Detroit Red Wings, who had a little controversy this off season, stripping Dylan Larkin of captaincy after he captained the team for the past five seasons due to him requesting a trade out of Detroit. This leaves an opening for the one that I am most certain of, that being Moritz Seider. It seems like the German defenseman in Seider is viewed as a leader in the Red Wing’s locker room, on top of being favored off the ice. If it isn’t Seider, then my next pick would be Lucas Raymond, but that seems quite unlikely.
After trading their captain this past off season to the Florida Panthers, the Ottawa Senators have at least three very solid options to be named, all three with very solid backing: a German in Tim Stutzle who is arguably the best player on the Senators, and the two defensemen Thomas Chabot and Jake Sanderson who both have served as alternate captains at some point in their careers. My prediction, however, is American Jake Sanderson, a young guy who commands a lot of respect on top of emerging as one of the top defensemen in the league this past season.
Lastly, the dumpster fire in the Vancouver Canucks. My prediction is defenseman Filip Hronek, who is very favored amongst the management and the rest of the team, but it could also go to Swedish forward Elias Petterson, who is a former Calder winner, but has struggled with his play these past few seasons, butting heads with former teammate and now-captain of the New York Rangers J.T. Miller. The Canucks, in my opinion, are the hardest ones to put a shoo-in captain due to the team being relatively young. It’s very possible they will go the next few seasons without a captain, waiting for a major player to join the organization to be named captain instead.
Featured image: Wikimedia Commons
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