'C'eeing the future: Don't be shocked if Blackhawks go without a captain next season
First in a series
How do you replace a legend?
That's the question facing the Blackhawks next season as they decide if anyone should take over for the departed Jonathan Toews as captain.
Before we get to that, let's reflect for a moment on what an unbelievable run it was for Toews.
When the Hawks named Toews captain on July 18, 2008 he was a mere 20 years and 79 days old. Only two players began their captaincy at a younger age - Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby and Tampa Bay's Vincent Lecavalier.
Toews was in his role for 1,003 games, almost doubling Dirk Graham's second-place Hawks number of 504. Chris Chelios is third at 299, while Darryl Sutter (282) and Johnny Gottselig (222) round out the top five.
"It's surreal to think that he won't be here," said defenseman Connor Murphy. "It'll be a weird thing to think of him not on the Blackhawks and leading us and being in a locker room and giving a speech to a guy or bringing someone in."
No doubt.
Toews helped guide the Hawks to three Stanley Cup titles and will go down as one of the top leaders in Chicago sports history.
The Hawks did not put a 'C' on anyone's sweater when Toews missed the 2020-21 season, instead rotating alternate captains between Patrick Kane, Alex DeBrincat, Andrew Shaw, Duncan Keith and Murphy.
And it would not surprise anyone if they went route again next season, which would pay tribute to Toews' 15 seasons as their leader.
"We've got some great veterans within the room," GM Kyle Davidson said on April 13. "It's something that we will also look to add to - (that) leadership group. But it's just that. It's a group. And it'll allow current players here (and) current players that come in to step into those roles and just allow that to work itself out naturally.
"It's not something that we're going to point to one person and say that's the guy. We'll let them figure that out and let them manage how the leadership in the room develops."
The last time the franchise didn't have a captain was from 1970-75. Stan Mikita and Pit Martin were then named co-captains for the 1975-76 campaign. Eight teams across the league had no captain last season.
Of course, the 'C' will be bestowed upon someone at some point. The most logical choice for 2024-25 is probably Seth Jones. Connor Murphy would be a solid choice as well.
Both defensemen have 600-plus games of NHL experience and are well respected by their peers.
"That'd be a huge honor," said Jones, who has seven years remaining on his contract. "The captains for the Chicago Blackhawks in the past - you know it's a category that's obviously unbelievable to be in. If I'm lucky enough to be, that'd be awesome. But I've got to focus on my game, and if that comes it comes."
Murphy, who is the longest tenured Hawk with 373 games played since 2017-18, hasn't thought about it and echoed Davidson's thoughts about letting the role sit vacant for a while.
"I don't know if that would be right after Tazer," Murphy said when asked if he would be willing to take on the role. "I don't know if anyone could live up to that anyway. So I don't know if that would be something that would even happen, honestly."
The guess here is that Murphy's right. Play next season out just like three years ago and see who best fills the void.
Leading the way
<b>Blackhawks captains of last 50 years:</b>Player Years
Pit Martin 1975-77
Stan Mikita 1975-77
Keith Magnuson 1976-80
Terry Ruskowski 1979-82
Darryl Sutter 1982-87
Bob Murray 1985-86
Denis Savard 1988-89
Dirk Graham 1988-95
Chris Chelios 1995-99
Doug Gilmour 1999-2000
Tony Amonte 2000-02
Alex Zhamnov 2002-04
Adrian Aucoin 2005-07
Martin Lapointe 2005-07
Jonathan Toews 2008-23
Source: NHL.com