Well, the long awaited announcement was made today. Mike Richards was named the 17th Captain in the history of the Flyers Franchise. For some, selecting Richards seemed like a no-brainer. In his first three years in the NHL he has shown the poise of a veteran. Last year he led the team in points, was tied for second in the league for shorthanded goals, and was previously captain of his junior team, the Kitchener Rangers. He also signed a 12 year contract with the team, which means the team has every intention of keeping him around for a while.
With the evidence in Richards’ favor, the Flyers seemed hesitant to make a quick selection, and with good reason. The captaincy, a well respected honor among hockey players, has bounced around on the Flyers team for the past few seasons. Last season it was held by Jason Smith, who departed the team only after one season. Prior to that, Peter Forsberg wore the “C” for the Orange and Black for 2/3 of a season before being sent to Nashville at the trade deadline. Derian Hatcher was the team captain for a portion of the 2005-2006 season after Keith Primeau went down with concussion problems. Obviously the Flyers were looking for stability and were being quite deliberate in their choice.
They had a good crop to choose from too. Veterans Simon Gagne, Kimmo Timonen, and Danny Briere are leaders in the locker room as well. A locker room, from a fan’s perspective, that is lacking egos. It seemed, from a fan’s perspective as well, that Richards became a well respected leader among those veterans.
Throwing this kind of responsibility on a 23 rising star is not always a good idea (see V. Lecavalier), but some young players have a poise and maturity about them beyond their years and bring nothing but success to their organization (see S. Yzerman). My expectations are for the latter.
In other news this week, the Flyers announced that goaltender Antero Niittymaki will be out for four-to-six after having surgery on his hip.
This week is Rookie Camp. One rookie looking to make an impression, and earn a roster spot, is Claude Giroux. The fans in Philadelphia got a taste of what Giroux has to offer when the Flyers called him up from his junior team for two games last season when the roster was devastated with injuries. There is a good chance he will be with the Flyers come the start of the season in October.
Tags: briere · Flyers · Gagne · Giroux · Niittymaki · Richards · Timonen1 Comment
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Richards deserves the “C”. Fantastic pick. He’s way past his 23 years in maturity.
I remember last season in an interview that he said he was hesitant to take on the role of captain?