Rumour has it that recent acquisition Dion Phaneuf will be made the newest captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs. This is hardly a surprise. But surprise or not, is it the right move?
Many fans' reaction is "so what?" And believe me, I see where you're coming from. An NHL captain, by definition, has one purpose - they have the "sole privilege of discussing with the Referee any questions relating to interpretation of rules which may arise during the progress of a game". Whoop de freakin' doo. The alternates get the same privilege. So why all of the hubbabaloo for a letter on your jersey that declares you as the "referee liaison" when you're on the ice?
I'm going to read out a list of Leafs greats. Sundin. Gilmour. Clark. Ramage. Vaive. Sittler. Keon.
Not only are those players some of the greatest and most recognizable players to ever suit up in the blue and white, they are also the last 7 captains in Leafs history.
Everybody knows that being the captain means much more than just talking to the officials. Your teammates will look at you for direction, for inspiration. When the chips are down, they're going to take a look at the guy with the C to say something to turn it all around.
Or better yet, they'll look at him to DO something.
And this is the tricky part. Those great Leaf captains weren't so recognizable because they wrote eloquent, inspirational speeches. They told their teams what they had to do and then they went out there and they DID it. They put their money where their mouth was. They brought home the bacon and cooked it up in the frying pan. They... alright, I think you get the picture.
Where I stand, is that I don't know that Dion is quite there yet. The guy is extremely talented, sure. But does he have a shot of being one of the greatest Leafs of all-time? Even one of the greatest Leafs of this era? I don't think you can make that call just yet. He showed flashes of brilliance in Calgary, but it was also the dulling of that brilliance that made the Flames willing to move him.
This also creates a situation where Captain Dion and alternates Beauchemin, Kaberle, and Komisarek form the player leadership group for the buds (though I still say that Kaberle will wear another jersey next season). I'm not a big fan of having every lettered jersey belong to a blue-liner. When it comes down to crunch time, and the leaders need to deliver, is stalwart defending going to be what turns the tides? Probably not.
When you look around the league, nearly every team that has given a defenseman the C has awarded As to a few skilled forwards. Together, this leadership squad can look to their captain for direction and inspiration, while the alternates put the words into action and create an example for the rest of the team.
Which brings me to a scary conclusion. Perhaps the reason why we have all of our letters on the blueline is because there is literally not a single forward deserving of a C or an A. Not only are our front lines lacking in talent, but they're lacking in grit and leadership.
Not only are they lacking in men able to move the ship forward, they lack a goal scorer that can show them where the ship must sail.
You've got your work cut out for you, Captain Dion.
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