Will Utah Hockey Club name a captain this year? Here’s what management said

You have to feel sorry for Utah Hockey Club management. Team president Chris Armstrong, general manager Bill Armstrong and head coach Andre Tourigny endured question after question at media day on Wednesday on whether the team would choose to name a captain this year.
The questions came amidst the announcements of two teams’ captains on Wednesday morning. The Chicago Blackhawks gave Nick Foligno the “C” and the Tampa Bay Lightning gave it to Victor Hedman. Foligno was the captain of the Columbus Blue Jackets from 2015 to 2021.
It sounds like Utah HC might name a captain, and the announcement could come before the start of the season, but nothing is final yet.
Team president Chris Armstrong wouldn’t give a name or a timeline, but he did say management is talking about it.
“No timestamp on when that might be,” Chris Armstrong said. “It’s an ongoing conversation inside the organization. (It’s) not something we’re prepared to give any indication on today, but it’s definitely a dialogue we’re having internally.”
When general manager Bill Armstrong was posed with the question, he emphasized that it’s not a decision he wants to rush.
“There’s nothing worse than if you go down the road and you name somebody and then you’re not happy with him six months later and you have to undo that,” Bill Armstrong said. “It usually doesn’t work out very well. So, we’re going to take our time and when we get to that point, we’ll (name) a captain. It will be done through due dilligence.”
Head coach Andre Tourigny listened in on his two colleagues’ answers to the captaincy questions before it was his turn to take a seat on the stand — and he came prepared.
“It’s a really important decision. If you name a captain, it’s important for him, it’s important for the entire organization. When you name a captain, everybody knows the captain.”
Tourigny went on to say that a true captain is someone whom management, coaches, players, media and fans all recognize as a leader.
“It’s not (just) someone who has a ‘C’ on his jersey,” he said.
These answers might make it sound like the team will opt to go without a captain, as the Coyotes did since Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s departure in 2021. But Tourigny gave a glimmer of hope at the end of his answer.
“I think we’re getting there,” he said. “We’re getting (to) the point where we’ll all be comfortable with what’s coming.”
Nothing is official yet, but it Tourigny’s comment makes it sound like management has a name in mind. The announcement would most likely come prior to the start of the regular season.
At any rate, it’s clear that the team sees this as much more than a marketing decision. The captain is not just the face of the team — He’s a leader, both on and off the ice.
Don’t take this as news, because we’re going to speculate a bit. These are purely educated guesses and they’re not based on any inside knowledge. Here are a few players who could get the “C” for Utah HC’s inaugural season.
“The Sheriff” is the name by which Lawson Crouse is known among his teammates. He tends to police the other teams, making sure that nobody delivers cheapshots to his team. If they do, they have to answer to Crouse and his six-foot-four, 215-pound frame.
Crouse was the first player the team sent out to face reporters at media day on Wednesday. This was probably a calculated move, as management trusts him to give answers of which they would approve. The captain is typically in charge of facing the media after difficult losses, and it seems like Crouse is a guy the team would want to fill that role.
As far as chemistry in the locker room goes, we will likely get a better understanding as the year goes on. But Crouse was the longest-serving Coyote when the team relocated to Utah and he’s certainly as familiar with the team and its staff as anyone is.
Being the team’s perennial leader in goals and points the last few seasons, Clayton Keller automatically gets consideration to be the face of the team.
Speaking of being the face of the team, he always seems to be the representative at league events. He just got back from NHL media day in Las Vegas, which he has attended for at least three years in a row. He also represents the team at seemingly every all-star game.
Keller was the second-longest-serving Coyote, joining the team at the tail end of Crouse’s first season. He is also very familiar with how things work.
NHL teams seem hesitant to name Europeans — especially Russians — as captains, likely because of the language barrier. Of the eight current European captains, the only Russian is Washington Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin, who has been the face of the franchise for an entire generation.
That being said, Mikhail Sergachev has important playoff experience and he is signed to a long-term contract. He was raised by the Tampa Bay Lightning under the wings of Hedman, Steven Stamkos, Ryan McDonagh and other bonafide leaders, and he definitely knows how to be a leader.
Sergachev is also expected to be one of Utah’s best players. That’s by no means a requirement of being a captain, but if the intention is for the captain to be the face of the franchise, it’s always good to have someone about whom the fans can get excited.
Oh, and having won the Cup twice doesn’t hurt.
It can be hard to join a new organization and take on a new role, especially when you’re speaking your second language. It would be completely understandable if Sergachev weren’t named captain, but it would also make sense if he were.
Some teams name, for lack of a better term, interim captains: veterans who won’t be there long-term, but they know how things go in the NHL and they can provide leadership until one of the younger players is ready to take on the mantle of being a long-term captain.
This is likely the case with Foligno in Chicago. Most of the hockey world expects Connor Bedard to eventually become the captain, but the team has likely concluded that it’s too soon to give that job to a 19-year-old.
If Utah HC wants to establish an interim-type of captain, Ian Cole would be a great candidate. He has played for seemingly every team in the league, winning the Stanley Cup on two occasions. He has played with some of the most notorious leaders in the league, including Sidney Crosby, Gabriel Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon, Stamkos and Hedman.
From the outside looking in, it seems like everyone likes Sean Durzi. That’s an invaluable trait to have in a captain. Tourigny said that the captain is a liaison between coaches and management and the players, and Durzi would be as capable as anyone at that.
Age and experience might prevent management from naming Durzi captain. He’s entering just his fourth season in the NHL. That being said, he’s been through a lot and has come out unscathed on the other side. That’s captain material.
Durzi learned from Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown and Drew Doughty, who are all renowned for their leadership qualities. He’s also signed for four years, so he will be in Utah long enough to really make an impact.