Will Lidstrom be the new captain?
With the lack of Wings news lately, fans have resorted to rumors and speculation. To add more fuel to the fire, Helene St. James at the Detroit Free Press is reporting that defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom will be named captain.
So how did she learn that Lidstrom will be the new captain? Well, she quoted named cited an unnamed source within the organization. She also said that Lids had just won his fourth straight Norris Trophy this year, which is obviously inaccurate.
But the team is holding off on a formal announcement, according to a person in the organization, to make a big splash before the season starts. Training camp opens Sept. 15 in Traverse City.
IwoCPO at Abel to Yzerman also finds this article and her reasoning as a bit sketchy to say the least.
Does that sound like the Red Wings? When has this team been concerned with “big splashes�
And if St. James’ source is so highly placed, wouldn’t that source be equally concerned with keeping this on the QT for the benefit of the “big splash�
It all sounds a bit contrived to me, and oddly timed.
And the Wings forums have plenty to say in regards to this topic of captaincy: Lets Go Wings and Red Wings Central.
SultanPapper at LGW had this to say:
“Wanting Hank as Captain is purely sentimental… Please. If I’m trusting someone’s game and vision to lead this team, it’s the four-time Norris winner and guy who has hockey down to a science. If I’m trusting veteran leadership and rallying the troops, it’s Draper, the guy barking on the bench. As good as Hank is, he is not that leader. Yzerman’s time and captaincy was different. Get over it.
Actually, I would have liked a co-captaincy… Lidstrom defense; Draper offense.”
Personally, I was hoping that Kris Draper would be named captain. Sure he wasn’t the leading candidate or two, but he’s always been the media go-to guy, he’s very vocal and passionate, and he has that veteran leadership. But I would be happy if Lidstrom was named captain because I feel Hank should have a few more years focusing on his game than leading the team.
I wonder if we’ll hear anything from Holland, Illitch, Babcock, etc. about this report.
Update: The Canadian Press managed to get a hold of head coach Mike Babcock and he refuted this story (link via Kukla’s Korner).
“I’m not saying Nick Lidstrom won’t be the captain but what I am telling you is that we haven’t spent one second on it yet,†Babcock told The Canadian Press on Wednesday from his off-season home in Saskatchewan. “Anything written about it at this point is pure speculation.â€
“When I get back I’ll meet with (GM) Kenny (Holland), Steve Yzerman and also with our veteran core, Chris Chelios, Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg and Kris Draper, have a chat, and do what’s best for our hockey club,” said Babcock.
Is it weird for anyone else that Babcock included Datsyuk and Zetterberg as part of our veteran core? I’m not saying that I don’t think they are talented players or worthy of being included in discussions, but I just don’t see either one as a veteran player. Am I wrong?
My first thought after hearing the Free Press report this story was…when are we going to hear from the Detroit News? They either lost out on breaking some “big news” or they have a chance to prove that the decision has yet to be made or is inaccurate. And what do we hear from them? Nothing. We have to rely on the Canadian Press to call Babcock to get straight to the news. How hard can it be to call up Holland or Babcock and simply inquire about this story?
Update #2: A2Y has linked to a comment left on the Detroit News board by someone who apparently emailed Helene St. James today. She responded by saying, “Thanks much, He may not have spent 1 second, but others in the organization have…”
If Babcock doesn’t know the status of the Wings captaincy, it doesn’t look good for the organization. There has to be miscommunication somewhere whether her source was inaccurate or Babcock is out of the loop, which is possible but is it really all that probable?
Update #3: The Detroit News article came out the next morning follow the Freep article.
“In the days ahead, I’m going to talk with Mike Babcock, ownership, others in the front office, and we’ll come to a decision,” Holland said. “Nick is obviously a strong choice, but there are three or four players who we feel could be the next captain.”
Yzerman retired July 3. Holland said the issue of picking a captain was pushed back by the Wings’ busy offseason schedule, which included re-signing their free agents and the search for a starting goalie.
I do find it incredibly interesting that they held off on a naming a captain because of their busy offseason. Busy? I don’t really think of this “Summer of Ken” as busy.
Related Posts
2 Responses to “Will Lidstrom be the new captain?”
Leave a Reply
August 23rd, 2006 at 2:59 pm
And now Babcock’s refuting it, claiming there has been no discussion whatsoever regarding the captaincy. Once again, the deep diggers have imploded. Unnamed sources, no attribution and a story with multiple holes.
August 24th, 2006 at 10:49 pm
Yeah not such a great week for Helene St. James…you’ve done a great job with covering this whole situation…