Edmonton Oilers Letters
It’s a done deal that Andrew Ference will wear the “C” again this season for the Edmonton Oilers, and this article will spend no time on whether that is correct, other than for me to say “of course it is”. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, this guy is practically everything that you would want in a captain. We’re lucky to have him.
Instead, let’s move on to the things we should question, like “who should wear the “A”’s? Last year, Dallas Eakins employed an interesting tactic, which was to name a number of players as alternates, and rotate the letters around more or less evenly. The jury is out, as far as I’m concerned, as to whether that was ultimately a success or not. I certainly didn’t mind it, but I have to admit that a question at the back of my head kept repeating: “In order to BE a leader, don’t you need to demonstrate it constantly?”
If I were the Oilers head coach (and, to be clear, you should all be glad that I am not, lol), I think I would lean toward having ONE captain and just TWO alternates. Having a sharper focus to your leadership group would be a subtle benefit to this club. If you buy that, then let’s debate who should wear those two “A”’s:
Taylor Hall – On the ice, he is the straw that stirs the drink. The electricity that flows through the Oilers bench when he’s “on” is palpable, and I submit is a real, significant factor in how the rest of the club performs. If that isn’t leadership, I don’t know what is. Does he have the maturity to handle it? Sure. Debate that on the captaincy, if you want, but I’m confident the kid can handle carrying this particular vowel.
Matt Hendricks. Again, a player who demonstrates leadership, shift in and shift out. My only hesitation here is that I strongly suspect you would get that out of Hendricks even if he DIDN’T wear a letter, and couldn’t you get more as a whole from being ok with that, and hope to extract a little more from someone else by rewarding them? Otherwise, this would get no argument from me.
Jordan Eberle. He has to be a fan favorite to be so emblazoned, and as one of my favorite players personally, I find it hard to argue against as well. His style is quite a bit different than Hall & Hendricks, more along the line of Dave Keon. He is competitive, yet carries himself with class, and plays the game with great integrity. I admire that.
Boyd Gordon. I put Gordon is a category similar to Matt Hendricks. I admire the hell out of him, and I know his team-mates do as well. I don’t think anyone would look sideways if he did get the “A”. But like Hendricks, he’s already doing the job without the letter.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. I was surprised when he was put in the rotation last year, not because I don’t hold him in high regard, because I do. But he strikes me as a quiet, unassuming guy, which is not the prototypical personality that usually goes along with “Captain”. I’m not in the dressing room, though.
David Perron. I never hear him named as a candidate, yet I can’t easily explain why? The guy plays the game the right way, with grit, has marvelous enthusiasm for the game that is clearly infectious, and has been around long enough to be a ‘veteran”. While I wouldn’t ultimately pick him, consideration is warranted.
Justin Schultz. Hmmm. Why not? Only because I think this young man has a LOT to still figure out about his game, while playing the hardest position on the ice. Would that additional “burden” complicate an already complicated situation. As much as I like the player, I fear so.
Benoit Pouliot. I don’t doubt he has the qualities. I just think it’s hard to so reward a player before he’s played a single, regular season game for you. Same goes for Mark Fayne. But if you use Andrew Ference as an example, then perhaps I’m talking about of both sides of my mouth.
Ultimately, who would I go with? Well, I believe Hall is a lock, and will eventually be the captain of this team. And I think because the older veterans will automatically lead by example, and for the reasons stated above, I’d choose #14.
What about you?