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Thread: Let's rank the NHL captains from best to worst

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    Default Let's rank the NHL captains from best to worst

    The Ovechkin/Hart trophy thread inspired me to make this. Big Ev and fungchen started talking about how Ovy is a bad captain and that made me curious about how all of you guys view the league's captains and how good they are at being just that.

    I know it's a really tricky quality to pinpoint and often we have no idea of how they are in the locker room, if they're boisterous or if they're more of the quiet lead-by-example type. Regardless, it would be fun to see how you rank them. Maybe not 1, 2, 3, 4 but like in chunks of really good, good, meh, bad, really bad?

    Let's go! And try to minimize team bias

    I'll start out on a few guys:

    Really good:
    Alfredsson

    Good:
    Zetterberg

    Meh:
    Crosby

    Bad:
    Jovanovski

    Really bad:
    Dion Phaneuf

    Here's a list if you can't remember who is captain and where: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...rnate_captains
    GO WINGS!

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    By leading by example, sticking up for teammates, smacking guys around, playing solid at both ends of the ice, and leading his team to the CUP........ One guy immediately comes to mind:

    Even taking on 3 guys at once..

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    In NY, I'd say Callahan is either Really Good or Good. And assuming JT becomes the new C with the Isles, I have no doubt he'll be a Really Good C for many many years to come!

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    Here's my list from worst to best (I know you asked for the opposite, but I wanted to save the best for last ):

    26) Jovanovski (No more passion, especially in Florida... you would think he would play hard for his draft team)
    25) Streit (Nothing against Swiss players but I don't see him motivating 20 something guys when it's crunch time) I know he’s out of NY but just in case he doesn’t sign, I added him to the list.
    24) H. Sedin (Same as Streit, but at least he can do it with his play)
    23) Phaneuf (Not as bad as some think, but I think his image and past image hurt his reputation)
    22) Horcoff (Not the mentor the team needs)
    21) Salvador (New captain, old team, lack of chemistry, but he's a warrior)
    20) M. Koivu (Veteran captain, but a bit like Sedin)
    19) Lecavalier (Feels like he's being pushed out, but still wants to lead)
    18) Giroux (Young, talented new captain; will come into his mold when veterans will be moved)
    17) Landeskog (Same as Giroux but plays for a younger team)
    16) Ladd (Overall great player, same thing for captaincy)
    15) Backes (Like Ladd but with a physical edge)
    14) Thornton (Veteran captain, with a lot of experience)
    13) Ovechkin (Leads team on the ice and cares for his teammates... his criticism hurts him though)
    12) Gionta (Veteran captain with a great mentorship role in Montreal... plays his role well)
    11) Weber (Warrior-like captain, but does not seem the same with Suter gone)

    10) Getzlaf (Like Backes but with more experience; his injuries have hurt his status)
    9) Brown (Warrior-like captain with a cup)
    8) Zetterberg (Leads by example and is able to gather his boys on a given night)
    7) Chara (He sticks up for anyone on his team ALL the time)
    6) Toews (Great young leader with a cup, maybe 2, in his young career)

    5) E. Staal (Same as Toews but with more experience)
    4) Crosby (Leads by example, he's verbal, and he is the best player on the ice. He's still young and needs to fully become the captain he is destined to be)
    3) Doan (Warrior, veteran, motivator, agitator... he has done it all except win the cup in Phoenix)
    2) Alfredsson (Same as Doan but more composure and less physical. Great leadership and an incredible career. Still a star player and a great mentor for his young team)
    1) Callahan (My definition of a captain... Has a little of Chara, Doan and Backes in him. He plays hard every shift and gives it his all for the team. He's verbal, he's aggressive and he is the leader of a very talented squad.)
    Last edited by Bass56; June 17, 2013 at 12:23 PM.
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    C- Crosby, Barzal, Bennett, Schmaltz, Novak
    W- Forsberg, Batherson, Nichuskin, Tuch, Konecny, Maccelli, Sharangovich, Bertuzzi, Kaliyev, Neighbours, Reichel
    D- Carlson, Rielly, Klingberg
    G- Hellebuyck, Demko, Merzlikins, Vejmelka

    Minors:
    F: Fantilli, Cooley, Bourgault, Perreault, Cowan, Ohgren, N. Foote, Goyette, Iskhakov, Denisenko, Tracey
    D: Simashev, Willander, Lambos
    G: Schmidt, Rodrigue, DiPietro, Gaudreau, McKay

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    Skill aside, in terms of "leadership qualities" my top guys would be Toews, Z, Cally, Crosby, Giroux, Backes, Brown.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Zorro View Post
    By leading by example, sticking up for teammates, smacking guys around, playing solid at both ends of the ice, and leading his team to the CUP........ One guy immediately comes to mind:

    Even taking on 3 guys at once..
    Ha... if those three could combine Voltron-style then it might be a fair fight.

    That said, someone needs to protect those poor delicate flowers like Lucic, Horton and Thornton...


    Oh, and as for the list, that might explain why I keep forgetting that Phaneuf is a captain.
    /S

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    Really good/good (not going to split hairs. Just a few guys not mentioned in your initial post): Chara, Toews, Callahan, Koivu, Weber, Thornton, Lecavalier, Staal, Giroux, Ladd

    Meh: Gionta, Doan (a lot of people like him, but I was SO turned off by his whining when the Coyotes got knocked out last season. That's not leadership)

    Bad/Really bad: Landeskog: I'm sure he'll be a fine leader one day, but he's way too young. That team was a disaster this year, and he was ill-equipped to do anything about it. G.S. Giguere had to step up and say something near season's end.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bass56 View Post
    Here's my list from worst to best (I know you asked for the opposite, but I wanted to save the best for last ):

    26) Jovanovski (No more passion, especially in Florida... you would think he would play hard for his draft team)
    25) Streit (Nothing against Swiss players but I don't see him motivating 20 something guys when it's crunch time) I know he’s out of NY but just in case he doesn’t sign, I added him to the list.
    24) H. Sedin (Same as Streit, but at least he can do it with his play)
    23) Phaneuf (Not as bad as some think, but I think his image and past image hurt his reputation)
    22) Horcoff (Not the mentor the team needs)
    21) Salvador (New captain, old team, lack of chemistry, but he's a warrior)
    20) M. Koivu (Veteran captain, but a bit like Sedin)
    19) Lecavalier (Feels like he's being pushed out, but still wants to lead)
    18) Giroux (Young, talented new captain; will come into his mold when veterans will be moved)
    17) Landeskog (Same as Giroux but plays for a younger team)
    16) Ladd (Overall great player, same thing for captaincy)
    15) Backes (Like Ladd but with a physical edge)
    14) Thornton (Veteran captain, with a lot of experience)
    13) Ovechkin (Leads team on the ice and cares for his teammates... his criticism hurts him though)
    12) Gionta (Veteran captain with a great mentorship role in Montreal... plays his role well)
    11) Weber (Warrior-like captain, but does not seem the same with Suter gone)

    10) Getzlaf (Like Backes but with more experience; his injuries have hurt his status)
    9) Brown (Warrior-like captain with a cup)
    8) Zetterberg (Leads by example and is able to gather his boys on a given night)
    7) Chara (He sticks up for anyone on his team ALL the time)
    6) Toews (Great young leader with a cup, maybe 2, in his young career)

    5) E. Staal (Same as Toews but with more experience)
    4) Crosby (Leads by example, he's verbal, and he is the best player on the ice. He's still young and needs to fully become the captain he is destined to be)
    3) Doan (Warrior, veteran, motivator, agitator... he has done it all except win the cup in Phoenix)
    2) Alfredsson (Same as Doan but more composure and less physical. Great leadership and an incredible career. Still a star player and a great mentor for his young team)
    1) Callahan (My definition of a captain... Has a little of Chara, Doan and Backes in him. He plays hard every shift and gives it his all for the team. He's verbal, he's aggressive and he is the leader of a very talented squad.)
    It's all good Don't care how the lists look as long as there's discussion going on

    Don't know about Brown being that high, though. He's dirty with kneeing and elbowing, dives among the most in the entire league and has a lot of bad attitude. That's not captain material in my book. The other guys in LA look at him and think it's all fine to goon it up at any time. He seems inspirational, but all the other dirty stuff clouds it all with him in my book.

    As for Crosby he's on the way to be a great leader, but he's still plagued by a lot of whining and losing his temper which leads to dirty stuff. That's not what a good captain does.

    The guy I measure everyone after is Steve Yzerman. Close second is Joe Sakic. I never much cared for boisterous, dirty guys like Messier or Clarke.
    GO WINGS!

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    Tough list, because it's hard to say what we are basing it on.

    Here's my criteria, the guy is injured and can't play.
    He shows up to practices on skates and he's allowed to stand behind the bench with the coaches to talk to the team.

    Here's the guys I'm going to go out and play the hardest for:

    1. Shane Doan
    2. David Backes
    3. Jonathan Toews
    4. Sidney Crosby
    5. Eric Staal
    6. Daniel Alfredsson
    7. Henrik Zetterberg
    8. Ryan Callahan
    9. Henrik Sedin
    10. Mikko Koivu
    11. Zdeno Chara
    12. Ryan Getzlaf
    13. Bryce Salvador
    14. Andrew Ladd
    15. Vincent Lecavalier
    16. Claude Giroux
    17. Brian Gionta
    18. Shawn Horcoff
    19. Ed Jovanovski
    20. Joe Thornton
    21. Alexander Ovechkin
    ...
    ...
    22. Dustin Brown
    23. Gabriel Landeskog
    24. Dion Phaneuf
    25. Shea Weber

    I'll give some explanation only on my bottom four.
    re: Brown. I appreciate his competitiveness, but he's always struck me as a bit of a douche.
    re: Landeskog. Too young. Again, competitiveness is fierce - but sometimes a guy can just feel "too young" to take orders from.
    re: Phaneuf. Douche.
    re: Weber. I'm sorry, but you didn't even re-sign with this team. You left already. I hate you.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Pengwin7 View Post
    I'll give some explanation only on my bottom four.
    re: Brown. I appreciate his competitiveness, but he's always struck me as a bit of a douche.
    re: Landeskog. Too young. Again, competitiveness is fierce - but sometimes a guy can just feel "too young" to take orders from.
    re: Phaneuf. Douche.
    re: Weber. I'm sorry, but you didn't even re-sign with this team. You left already. I hate you.
    Awesome reasons :P

    They portray an amusing contrast in comparison to the statistical analyses that you often use to validate your points!
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    C- Crosby, Barzal, Bennett, Schmaltz, Novak
    W- Forsberg, Batherson, Nichuskin, Tuch, Konecny, Maccelli, Sharangovich, Bertuzzi, Kaliyev, Neighbours, Reichel
    D- Carlson, Rielly, Klingberg
    G- Hellebuyck, Demko, Merzlikins, Vejmelka

    Minors:
    F: Fantilli, Cooley, Bourgault, Perreault, Cowan, Ohgren, N. Foote, Goyette, Iskhakov, Denisenko, Tracey
    D: Simashev, Willander, Lambos
    G: Schmidt, Rodrigue, DiPietro, Gaudreau, McKay

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    Fun thought but it's almost impossible to determine what most of these captains contribute to behind closed doors. Sometimes the guys you think wouldn't make great leaders actually become huge influences in the dressing rooms.


    For me,
    Crosby, Getzlaf, Callahan, Alfredsson, Staal and Doan seem to have great personalities to be among the NHL's best.

    An interesting discussion would also be what non-NHL Captains would make good ones (Parise)

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    Quote Originally Posted by Dean Youngblood View Post
    Fun thought but it's almost impossible to determine what most of these captains contribute to behind closed doors. Sometimes the guys you think wouldn't make great leaders actually become huge influences in the dressing rooms.


    For me,
    Crosby, Getzlaf, Callahan, Alfredsson, Staal and Doan seem to have great personalities to be among the NHL's best.

    An interesting discussion would also be what non-NHL Captains would make good ones (Parise)
    Good point Dean. Also, captains don't always have to be the best players, skill-wise, on a team (it helps when you can play on the first or the second line as you will be on the ice more often). My list was based on the tangible elements that most fans can see, but your point is so important when it comes to evaluating this role. I hear Callahan is a party animal, but he knows when to draw the line for himself AND his teammates. Sadly, the same can't be said about Neon Dion (insert pictures from parties and strip clubs where Mr. Cuthbert is caught in compromising poses along with his 'mates).
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    C- Crosby, Barzal, Bennett, Schmaltz, Novak
    W- Forsberg, Batherson, Nichuskin, Tuch, Konecny, Maccelli, Sharangovich, Bertuzzi, Kaliyev, Neighbours, Reichel
    D- Carlson, Rielly, Klingberg
    G- Hellebuyck, Demko, Merzlikins, Vejmelka

    Minors:
    F: Fantilli, Cooley, Bourgault, Perreault, Cowan, Ohgren, N. Foote, Goyette, Iskhakov, Denisenko, Tracey
    D: Simashev, Willander, Lambos
    G: Schmidt, Rodrigue, DiPietro, Gaudreau, McKay

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    I'm sorry to all the Canucks fans out there but I seriously believe that Henrik Sedin has to be in the bottom 3 worst captains in the league.. Did anyone watch the 2010/11 finals?? Enough said.. What does Henrik do as captain??

    I also believe that Kesler should have been named captain.. Kesler shows his passion on the ice, shows his frustrations, and would stick up for a teammate and take the blame for a loss..

    Mikko Koivu?? Come on now.. I guess I don't know too much about this guy, but would he take the blame for a loss? Would he block multiple shots for his team when it counts? If he wasn't able to go out on the ice and make a huge hit, or grab onto to someone from the other team because of a cheap shot, would he be able to take the team on his shoulders and score some big goals?? I really don't think so.. So what does he do as captain??

    Callahan, Backes, Doan, Chara, Staal, Crosby, Toews, Zetterberg, Brown and Giroux are definitely my top 10..(Alffie should be in there somewhere too)
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    Quote Originally Posted by Zorro View Post
    I'm sorry to all the Canucks fans out there but I seriously believe that Henrik Sedin has to be in the bottom 3 worst captains in the league.. Did anyone watch the 2010/11 finals?? Enough said.. What does Henrik do as captain??

    I also believe that Kesler should have been named captain.. Kesler shows his passion on the ice, shows his frustrations, and would stick up for a teammate and take the blame for a loss..
    I don't recall Lidstrom getting big into on ice confrontations... I don't think it is necessary for captain-y behaviour. That said, I'm not nominating Hank for Captain of the year either.

    Kesler wouldn't be a great choice... he lacks maturity and takes dumb penalties at bad times. If his A game was his typical outing then yeah, but he gets dive-y, whine-y or stupid too often.


    Ah well, I'm just glad this hasn't to deteriorated to a Kirk vs Picard debate.
    I like to think it's that we all know Reynolds beats both.
    /S

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    Quote Originally Posted by Loch View Post
    Ah well, I'm just glad this hasn't to deteriorated to a Kirk vs Picard debate.
    I like to think it's that we all know Reynolds beats both.
    They are all a distant second/third/fourth behind Janeway anyways.

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