VanIslander
A 19-year ATDer on HfBoards
There are several examples of teams that had one guy as the designated captain, but another guy as the true leader in the dressing room and on the ice.
Reporters have noted such, time and again.
Two clear examples come to mind:
1. Mark Messier in Edmonton during the Gretzky years.
Gretzky wore the 'C' and had gravitas, but Moose led the team, calling out players in the dressing room, being vocal on the bench, jokingly referred to as "coach" by Lowe once during intermission.
2. Joe Nieuwendyk in Dallas during Hatcher captaincy.
Derian was American, and the franchise was in Texas, so the 'C' made sense for media responsibilities, but - even though Modano too was American - it was Joe who the media said led the locker room. In fact, I recall, the postseason before their cup, when Nieuwy went out with an injury in the first game of the playoffs, an announcer said the players were devastated, that the true leader of the Stars was sidelined pretty much ends the hopes of the cup contenders that year.
There are others....
Reporters have noted such, time and again.
Two clear examples come to mind:
1. Mark Messier in Edmonton during the Gretzky years.
Gretzky wore the 'C' and had gravitas, but Moose led the team, calling out players in the dressing room, being vocal on the bench, jokingly referred to as "coach" by Lowe once during intermission.
2. Joe Nieuwendyk in Dallas during Hatcher captaincy.
Derian was American, and the franchise was in Texas, so the 'C' made sense for media responsibilities, but - even though Modano too was American - it was Joe who the media said led the locker room. In fact, I recall, the postseason before their cup, when Nieuwy went out with an injury in the first game of the playoffs, an announcer said the players were devastated, that the true leader of the Stars was sidelined pretty much ends the hopes of the cup contenders that year.
There are others....