The New York Rangers are currently one of two teams in the entire league to not have a captain going into this season. The other team is the Boston Bruins, who traded their captain, Brad Marchand, last season to the Florida Panthers. The Rangers also traded their captain last season, when they dealt Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks. They have traded their last three captains, with Ryan Callahan and Ryan McDonagh also being traded while captain of the team. With how disastrous last season unfolded, it’s clear that they could use some leadership in the locker room. In this piece, we are going to go over four options the Rangers could choose from when it comes to who gets the captaincy this season.
Vincent Trocheck
One of the more popular names among the fanbase that could be considered for captain is Vincent Trocheck. He will be entering his fourth season with the team, and while he did have a down season last year, he is still considered one of the heart and soul players for the Rangers. He tries to give it his all every shift and isn’t afraid to get physical when he needs to. Those are some of the qualities teams look for when naming a captain, and Trocheck seems to fit the bill perfectly. He has been through the highs and lows with this team over the past few seasons, from winning the Presidents’ Trophy and getting to the Eastern Conference Final, to losing to the New Jersey Devils in the first round of the playoffs after having a 2-0 series lead. He has gone through adversity and knows what it takes to overcome it.
J.T. Miller
Another player who plays a similar game to Trocheck is his good friend, J.T. Miller. He was traded back to the Rangers last season from the Vancouver Canucks and was the best player on the team from the time he got back to the end of the regular season. He helped elevate the game of Mika Zibanejad, who seemed to be rejuvenated playing on the same line as Miller, and he made his other linemates look better as well. While he has been known to have had locker room issues in the past, which was a main reason why he was traded from Vancouver, he and Trocheck seem to be the two key players that general manager Chris Drury wants the team to play more like.
Is he the best fit personality-wise to become a captain? Maybe not, but maybe that is what this team needs. They need a player who isn’t afraid to hold back how he is feeling, and if he thinks something is wrong, he will let it be known. He was brought back to New York because Drury loves him and thinks he is a key piece in getting the Rangers back to being Stanley Cup contenders. It would not come as a shock to see him be named captain before the season begins, and if he is, time will tell if he is up for that challenge.
Adam Fox
One of the underrated names that has been brought up as a potential captain is Adam Fox. He grew up a Rangers fan and forced his way to New York after being on two different teams previously. He bleeds Rangers red, white, and blue, and it feels like he would be the perfect fit for captain if he wanted to be. He is also one of the best overall players in the entire league and one of the top three, if not two, defensemen in the NHL. While he isn’t the loudest player and seems more laid back, if he were given the captaincy, there is no doubt that he would put 100% of his effort into wearing that letter, and he would not take it for granted.
Related: Expectations for Rangers’ Mika Zibanejad This Season
It’s not often you hear a story of a player becoming the captain of their childhood team. It would be an amazing accomplishment for Fox at this point in his career. Again, while he might not seem like someone who should be a captain in front of the cameras, nobody knows how he acts when it’s just the players in the locker room. He is the kind of player who would lead by example, and because he is so good at what he does, his teammates would listen and respect him for what he has done in his career. Out of the three players named in this list, Fox would likely be the fan favorite if given the captaincy. He is just like all other Rangers fans, and people would be able to connect with him on a more personal level.
No Captain Named/Someone Steps up During the Season
The Rangers do not have to name a captain before the season begins, and maybe they won’t. Most of these players were here last season, and none of them could help turn the season around after the ship began to sink. It would not be shocking to see no captain named to start the season because, frankly, who really would deserve it after what transpired last season? While some of these players might have the qualities you need to be a good captain, there is a “stink” around these players because of how poorly they reacted last season to the off-ice decisions that they had no control over. They basically “quit” on the season because they felt mistreated by management, and now, it’s time for them to wipe the slate clean and come into this season with a new attitude.
If a captain were to be named this season, it could happen during the season. Any one of these players could step up and show why they deserve to be the captain. It could be one of the players named in this piece or a different player entirely. All of these players should come into this season with the mindset of putting last season behind them and giving it their all to prove the doubters wrong. If one of them can stand out among the rest, then maybe they should be named the captain.
It’s always an honor to be named a captain in the NHL, especially when it’s one of the Original Six teams. This is an honor you can not take for granted, as an opportunity like this could only come around once in your career. The Rangers are looking for a new leader and for somebody to step up and take control of this team. Whether it was one of the players listed earlier in this piece or a player that nobody expects, somebody is going to become the 29th captain in franchise history. Whether it happens before the season, during the season, or even after the season remains to be seen.
