San Jose Sharks: Who should be the team’s next captain?

The San Jose Sharks have been left with a vacancy at their captain spot following the departure of Joe Pavelski. Here are three candidates to replace him going forward.

The San Jose Sharks have a rich history of long-tenured players who have made substantial impacts on the franchise. From Owen Nolan to Patrick Marleau, the Sharks top players have often proudly worn the “C” letter patch on their jerseys.

And for the past four seasons, that player has been Joe Pavelski.

Pavelski was chosen to be the team’s captain following the hire of new head coach Peter DeBoer. But now with Pavelski departing via free agency after 13 years spent in San Jose, DeBoer will now be tasked with selecting his successor.

There are countless deserving members on the roster — more so than most NHL rosters — and choosing one may prove to be difficult. A captain is far from just “the best player” on any given team.

Captains serve as brand ambassadors and team mentors. They must be able to talk to the media under both criticism and praise. And most of all, they must be the unquestioned leader of the team on and off the ice.

A couple of notable omissions from the list are Erik Karlsson, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, and Tomas Hertl who, while all deserving, just aren’t as likely as the other three players we will talk about.

With that, let’s jump in and look at the three most deserving candidates.

3. Joe Thornton

If there’s any player that makes sense to assume the vacant captain role it’s someone who has already held that title in the past. In fact, Joe Thornton was the player who held the captaincy from 2010-2014 just prior to Pavelski’s reign.

Thornton certainly doesn’t lack in experience having played in San Jose for the past 14 seasons. Prior to that, he spent eight years with the Boston Bruins. In total, the 40-year-old Thornton has 21 seasons of experience in the NHL which is longer than many players in the league have been alive.

He is a tone-setter and a team leader who demands the respect of everyone who comes in contact with him. On the surface, Thornton seems like a great option to replace Pavelski and regain his spot at the top of the throne.

However, there is one caveat. He has yet to re-sign with the team.

While it’s almost a given that he does return for next season, he likely won’t be around for the long haul which could limit his duration as captain. On top of that, there’s no guarantee that he would like the job back after being stripped of the role back in 2014.

Nonetheless, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone in the organization who would be opposed to Thornton as captain, even if he’s not the obvious first choice.