The Vancouver Canucks may be headed into the 2026-27 season with no captain at all.
That would be a notable choice, but not an unprecedented one. Daily Faceoff’s Hunter Crowther believes Vancouver should leave the role open rather than rush to name a new leader after Quinn Hughes was traded to the Minnesota Wild midway through last season.
The Canucks have already taken their time with the vacancy. Even now, deep into the offseason, they still have not handed out the ‘C.’
Crowther sees that as the right call for a team he describes as being in a “transitional period,” pointing to the arrival of a new general manager, a new head coach, a top prospect and several veteran free agent signings after one of the franchise’s worst regular-season performances.
“With no clear franchise player in their lineup, and speculation over the future of highly paid forwards Elias Pettersson and Jake DeBrusk, perhaps the best course of action would be to leave the captaincy vacant in 2026-27,” Crowther writes. “Veterans like Luke Schenn and Brendan Gallagher can help reset the locker room and allow young players like Marco Rossi, Zeev Buium and 2026 No. 3 overall pick Caleb Malhotra to find their voices as they mature as professionals.”
There’s also the risk of putting the ‘C’ on the wrong player and having to live with that decision.
For now, Schenn and Gallagher can fill that leadership role without the official label, while Rossi, Buium and Malhotra continue developing into players who could eventually take over. That leaves the Canucks with a real possibility: no captain in Vancouver this season.
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