The Ottawa Senators are still weighing their next captain, and they’re not rushing the call.
While a number of NHL teams were handing out leadership letters on Monday ahead of training camp, Ottawa stayed put on its decision after Brady Tkachuk was traded to the Florida Panthers in June for four draft picks. The Senators now sit among a group of teams still without a captain, including the Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, San Jose Sharks and Vancouver Canucks.
Around the league, the movement started quickly. The New York Islanders made Bo Horvat the 16th captain in franchise history, filling the spot left by Anders Lee after he signed with the Utah Mammoth as an unrestricted free agent on July 1. The Montreal Canadiens also settled part of their leadership group, naming Josh Anderson an alternate captain alongside Nick Suzuki and Mike Matheson.
Ottawa, though, is taking its time. That much was clear from what Steve Staios said last Tuesday at the club’s charity golf tournament.
“I don’t think that’s anything that we want to rush into. It’s an important decision,” Staios said.
“Yet, when I look at our group and the potential players that could be our next captain here for the Ottawa Senators, it just comes naturally to all these players that we’re talking about.”
The leading names in the mix are Thomas Chabot, Jake Sanderson and Tim Stutzle. Sanderson is viewed as the frontrunner, Chabot as the player many around the team see as the most deserving, and Stutzle as someone who should be part of the conversation because he’s ready for a bigger leadership role.
The Senators have already met with the three of them, and the word circulating in league circles is that each was told the organization would let them know soon which direction it plans to go.
There’s also been discussion about Claude Giroux potentially wearing the “C” for a year, though that idea is viewed as unlikely. At 38, Giroux is seen as the kind of veteran who leads whether or not he has a letter on his sweater.
And while Tkachuk was the emotional face of the team during his run as captain, Chabot’s influence behind the scenes has not gone unnoticed. Several people around the club believe he helped keep things steady and kept the focus on improvement where it belonged.
That showed up last year when Ottawa moved training camp to Quebec City. Chabot, whose off-season home is in Saint-Marie, organized a golf outing for teammates and hosted a dinner at his home during an off day.
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