Buffalo Sabres Captaincy: Brian Gionta
Many questions surround the Buffalo Sabres as the team heads into the upcoming NHL season. Where will Jack Eichel fit in? How will Sam Reinhart work? How about new additions Evander Kane, Ryan O’Reilly and co.?
Another question may be this: who will be the captain of the Buffalo Sabres this coming season?
The quick answer is, of course, Brian Gionta, who wore the “C” last season in his first year with the team. The Rochester native signed with the Buffalo Sabres at the beginning of free agency last July, and he’s got two years left on his contract with Buffalo.
Last season, Gionta put up 35 points, including 13 goals and 22 assists, in 69 games with the Buffalo Sabres.
Will Gionta once again wear the “C” for Buffalo this season – or is there a chance that another player could get it instead?
The fact is, with the Buffalo Sabres, the captaincy simply isn’t guaranteed from season to season. Granted, I suppose that’s true with any team, but there are always going to be those teams with long-term Cs.
Look at, for instance, the Pittsburgh Penguins.
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Sidney Crosby has been their guy since 2006, and there’s seemingly no stopping him from remaining in that position until he retires (or is traded, or signs elsewhere, but still – that’s likely aways off.)
Since Crosby was named captain in Pittsburgh, the Sabres have had 13 players wear the C, including six in the rotating captaincy of 2007-2008.
Since October 2008 – after the rotating captaincy was finished – the Buffalo Sabres have had five players wear the C.
Compare that to the rest of the NHL and – you guessed it – The Buffalo Sabres have had the most players wear the captaincy since 2008.
Many teams have had three different captains since then, including the Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers and Ottawa Senators.
An even larger handful of teams (11, to be exact) have had two captains, and a small portion of teams, including Crosby’s Penguins, Phaneuf’s Leafs and Chara’s Bruins, have had just one player wear the C. But that’s it – no other team aside from the Sabres has had so many captains in such a short amount of time.
Granted, some of that turnover on the Buffalo Sabres’ part is due to sheer turnover in the roster.
Craig Rivet wore the C until he was waived in February 2011, a span of almost three years.
Jason Pominville wore it until he was traded; the same goes for Thomas Vanek and Steve Ott. Without that seemingly “franchise player” to give the C to, it’s bound to get tossed around a bit more as guys come and go.
But now – have the Buffalo Sabres found their guy? Will the team once again grace Brian Gionta with the captaincy this season, since he is indeed returning, at least for the next two seasons (assuming there are no trades, etc.)? Or will they shift it around, perhaps giving it to a newcomer like Sam Reinhart, Jack Eichel or even Evander Kane?
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