List of current NHL captains and alternate captains
The National Hockey League (NHL) is a professional ice hockey league composed of 30 teams, founded in 1917. Each team may select a captain, who has the "sole privilege of discussing with the Referee any questions relating to interpretation of rules which may arise during the progress of a game".[1][2] Each team is also permitted to select a maximum of two alternate captains, who serve when the captain is not on the ice.[1] Captains are required to wear the letter "C" on their uniform for identification; alternate captains wear the letter "A". Both letters are 3 inches (7.6 cm) in height.[1]
Some teams in the NHL have no captain, either by choice or due to injury. Rule 6.2 of the 2008–09 Official NHL Rulebook indicates that "[o]nly when the Captain is not in uniform, the Coach shall have the right to designate three Alternate Captains. This must be done prior to the start of the game."[1] The Florida Panthers, the Toronto Maple Leafs, and the New York Islanders have no chosen captain and have instead named three alternate captains.[3][4][5] The Minnesota Wild do not name a captain for the full season; rather, they rotate captains on a month-to-month basis.[6] Many NHL teams with a named captain select more than two alternate captains and rotate the "A" among these players throughout the season.[7]
Goaltenders are not permitted to act as captains during games.[1] This rule was instituted in 1948 after teams complained that it took Montreal Canadiens goaltender Bill Durnan too long to skate to talk with the officials and back to his crease.[8] However, Vancouver Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo is the team's current captain, but because of the NHL rule against goaltender captains, the league does not allow Luongo to serve as captain on-ice.[9] As a result, the Canucks are allowed to dress three alternate captains in games, as opposed to the league standard of two.[9] Two (of the three) alternate captains handle on-ice duties in Luongo's place: Willie Mitchell serves as the liaison with the officials and Mattias Ohlund handles ceremonial aspects of the game, such as ceremonial faceoffs.[9] Luongo is not allowed to wear the "C" on his jersey, but it is incorporated into the artwork on the front of his mask.[8] Other than Durnan and Luongo, five other goaltenders have captained their team: John Ross Roach of the Toronto St. Patricks, George Hainsworth of the Montreal Canadiens, Roy Worters of the New York Americans, Alex Connell of the Ottawa Senators, and Charlie Gardiner of the Chicago Black Hawks.[10]
Jonathan Toews, captain of the Chicago Blackhawks, is the third-youngest player to be named permanent captain of a team in NHL history.[11] Only Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Vincent Lecavalier of the Tampa Bay Lightning—both current NHL captains—were younger than Toews when first named captains.[11] In 1984, Brian Bellows was named interim captain of the Minnesota North Stars when Craig Hartsburg was injured, and is the youngest player to captain a team in NHL history. However, because he served only as an interim captain, Sidney Crosby retains the distinction of being the youngest permanent captain in NHL history.[12]
Captains
- The above list shows the captains and alternate captains appointed for the 2008–09 NHL season.
Notes
- a Player is currently on the injured reserve list
- b Despite goaltenders not being allowed to act as captains during the game, Roberto Luongo was named captain for the Canucks, but was not allowed to wear a C on his jersey. He incorporated it into the artwork on the front of his mask, however.[8]
References
- ^ a b c d e "Rule 6 - Captain and Alternate Captains". National Hockey League. Retrieved 2008-10-04.
- ^ Rossi, Rob (2008-10-02). "The A-B-Cs of the 'C' and 'A'". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved 2008-10-04.
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(help) - ^ a b "Toronto Maple Leafs team roster". Toronto Maple Leafs. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ a b "Florida Panthers team roster". Florida Panthers. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ Buffery, Steve (2008-10-09). "Stalled Stajan". Toronto Sun. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
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(help) - ^ "Wild names Brunette captain for February". Minnesota Wild. 2009-02-02. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
- ^ "Kings' Brown, Sabres' Rivet named captains". Canwest News Service. 2008-10-08. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
- ^ a b c The Canadian Press (2008-10-05). "Luongo sports captain's 'C' on goalie mask". CBC Sports. Retrieved 2009-02-14. Cite error: The named reference "van_luongo" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ a b c "Canucks name goaltender Luongo as team captain". The Sports Network. 2008-09-30. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
- ^ Joe Pelletier (2008-09-30). "Captain Puckstopper". Joe Pelletier. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ a b "Toews named 34th captain in team history". Chicago Blackhawks. 2008-07-18. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ McKeon, Ross (2007-12-10). "Mailbag: More Crosby". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
- ^ "Anaheim Duck team roster". Anaheim Ducks. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Atlanta Thrashers team roster". Atlanta Thrashers. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Boston Bruins team roster". Boston Bruins. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Buffalo Sabes team roster". Buffalo Sabres. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Calgary Flames team roster". Calgary Flames. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Carolina Hurricanes team roster". Carolina Hurricanes. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Chicago Blackhawks team roster". Chicago Blackhawks. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Colorado Avalanche team roster". Colorado Avalanche. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Columbus Blue Jackets team roster". Columbus Blue Jackets. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Dallas Stars team roster". Dallas Stars. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Detroit Red Wings team roster". Detroit Red Wings. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Edmonton Oilers team roster". Edmonton Oilers. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Los Angeles Kings team roster". Los Angeles Kings. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Minnesota Wild team roster". Minnesota Wild. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Montreal Canadiens team roster". Montreal Canadiens. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Nashville Predators team roster". Nashville Predators. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "New Jersey Devils team roster". New Jersey Devils. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "New York Islanders team roster". New York Islanders. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "New York Rangers team roster". New York Rangers. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Ottawa Senattors team roster". Ottawa Senators. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Philadephia Flyers team roster". Philadelphia Flyers. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Phoenix Coyotes team roster". Phoenix Coyotes. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Pittsburgh Penguins team roster". Pittsburgh Penguins. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "San Jose Sharks team roster". San Jose Sharks. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "St. Louis Blues team roster". St. Louis Blues. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Tampa Bay Lightning team roster". Tampa Bay Lightning. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Vancouver Canucks team roster". Vancouver Canucks. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Washington Capitals team roster". Washington Capitals. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
External links