At the start of the free agency period, there were seven teams looking to name new captains. As of today, three teams have made their decisions. Montreal will go with four alternate captains this season, as Toma's Plekanec, Andrei Markov, Max Pacioretty, and PK Subban will serve in that role. The move is presumably to see whether Subban or Pacioretty can handle the added responsibilities while giving Plekanec and Markov the opportunity to help them grow into those roles.
Ottawa named Erik Karlsson the captain on the same day they signed Bobby Ryan to a seven year extension. The move is significant because it means the Senators are locked in with a captain for more than the one year they got from Jason Spezza. Chris Phillips and Chris Neil will help Karlsson out, since they remain alternate captains.
Florida named newcomer Willie Mitchell captain in a move that gives Florida veteran leadership on a team that is one of the youngest in the league.
Columbus, Buffalo, and San Jose remain without a captain as of this time.
Update: the New York Rangers named Ryan McDonagh captain with Dan Girardi, Martin St. Louis, Marc Staal, and Derek Stepan etching as alternate captains.
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