Why Brian Gionta Could Be Captain Of The Buffalo Sabres

With the departures of last year’s Buffalo Sabres co-captains Thomas Vanek and Steve Ott, the Sabres may be looking for a new leader to wear the “C” this coming season. Of course, there’s the possibility that the team could go with the rotating captaincy of years ago or elect to not choose a captain at all – a la the Montreal Canadiens – there may be a few options for the new captaincy.

One of those options: newcomer Brian Gionta.

While I’ve never been a big fan of giving a new guy the “C” before he’s ever even played a game in the blue and gold (like the Sabres did with Craig Rivet years ago), Gionta might be a solid option. Here’s five reasons why Brian Gionta could be the new captain of the Buffalo Sabres:

Brian Gionta already has leadership experience.

Gionta, 35, was previously captain of the Montreal Canadiens from 2010 until 2014. He was named captain of the Habs after just one season in Montreal and filled in a big spot. The previous captain for Montreal was, of course, Saku Koivu, who had held the spot for ten years.

The Habs went without a captain for the 2009-10 year – though Gionta was an assistant – before naming him to the position in September 2010.

With that, he became just the second American captain in the team’s history. He maintained the captaincy for the next four seasons, and Montreal made the playoffs in three of those years. They had records of 44-30-8, 31-35-16, 29-14-5 (lockout year) and 46-28-8. They made it to the conference finals once and to the conference quarterfinals twice.

But his captaincy with Montreal wasn’t Gionta’s first taste in a leadership role; he also served as captain at Boston College, where he played from 1997 until 2001.

He genuinely wants to be in Buffalo.

Gionta became an unrestricted free agent in July. He could have signed anywhere, but he willingly chose to sign with the Sabres. And maybe not everyone sees it that way, but in my opinion, choosing to sign with a team says a lot. He could have waited through part of the summer to see what other offers he received from NHL teams – but he didn’t. He signed with the Sabres right on July 1st as free agency opened.

Maybe it’s in part due to his upbringing just down the I-90 in Rochester. Being close to home will certainly be a great thing for him. He was already familiar with the general Western New York area and the community seems to be welcoming him with open arms. He grew up watching the Sabres and now, he gets to join his childhood team.

In an article posted September 16 on NHL.com, Gionta said that he’s excited to be in Buffalo.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been that close to home, and I think it’s a great fit for myself on the team but also for my family in the community.”

He can already see the Sabres in the playoffs.

Everyone knows how poorly the Sabres finished last season. While many people are focused so heavily on the rebuild and the potential of getting the 2015 first-overall pick (likely Connor McDavid), Gionta can already see the Sabres in the playoffs and wants getting in to be the goal for this year.

“The expectation is to make the playoffs and continue to grow and build. I think that’s the first step. I think it’s a realistic step to try to get in there in the playoffs,” Gionta said in an ESPN.com article from September 8.

That’s exactly the kind of captain we need – someone who believes in this team and wants to start succeeding and working towards the playoffs right away. Forget a few years down the line — how about right now?

Gionta has 12 seasons of NHL experience under his belt.

Brian Gionta is, by all means, an NHL veteran. A 1998 draft pick of the New Jersey Devils (82nd overall), he began his NHL career in 2001. Since then, he’s played in 888 NHL games (regular season and playoffs combined). He has 12 seasons of NHL experience between New Jersey and Montreal and will bring all of that to Buffalo this season.