The Colorado Avalanche franchise began in Quebec as part of the WHA. The ex-Nordiques were one of four teams to have been taken in by the NHL and were in Quebec until 1995, when the team moved to Denver and became the Avalanche. In their history, the Nordiques/Avalanche have had nine captains, and as you will see, one person accounts for most of that time. The first captain in the team's maiden voyage in the NHL was Marc Tardif, who would go on to hold that distinction from 1979 until 1981. A brief captain reign by Robbie Ftorek followed, and he was replaced by Andre Dupont for the 1981-82 season. The following year, the team went without a captain. The next two seasons were Mario Marois' team to lead. The second longest reign as captain belongs to Peter Stastny, who was not only a great scorer in his prime, but also captain from 1985 to 1990. The 1990-91 season saw co-captains, as Steven Finn and Joe Sakic would hold that role. This would not be the last time Sakic would hold that role, though. After a year with Mike Hough at the helm, Sakic would regain that role for good in 1992 until the team's last year in Quebec in 1995. When the team became the Colorado Avalanche, Sakic still held that role as captain, but in that first season, he also became a superstar with his playoff performance. He had always been a good player, but that year saw him take his game to a new level. He never looked back, as not only would his play earn him two Stanley Cups and a gold medal in the 2002 Olympic Games, but he would also be the team captain until his retirement in 2009. In the last 30 years, his reign as captain was the second longest on one team, with Steve Yzerman of the Detroit Red Wings being the only player with a longer reign with one team. Sakic was replaced by another Nordique/Avalanche lifer Adam Foote, who currently holds that role, though he is on the injured list at the time of this writing.
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