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Meltzer's Musings: Where did Richards rank among Flyers' captains? |
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With the departure of Mike Richards this summer and the speculation that Chris Pronger will eventually be named the 18th full-time captain in Flyers history, I thought it would be a good time to revisit the topic of the best and worst captains in franchise history.
It's a no-brainer that Bobby Clarke should be ranked as the most important and accomplished captain in club history. But for the sake of ranking -- and to generate some discussion -- I have ranked each of Clarke's two tenures separately within the rankings.
Here goes:
1. Bobby Clarke (1973-79): The gold standard by which all Flyers captains' tenures are measured against will always be Clarke's first reign as captain. Apart from the club's extraordinary success on the ice -- two Stanley Cups, three Cup Finals appearances, defeating the Red Army -- Clarke was also a galvanizing force in the unity these clubs had with each other and behind Fred Shero. The reason why Clarke stepped down as captain the first time is that he'd been asked to become a playing assistant coach. Remaining captain while being a coach would have created a conflict of interests.
2. Dave Poulin (1984-89): In many ways, Poulin's tenure was every bit as remarkable as Clarke's. He had to keep everyone unified under a coach the players feared and despised, comforted his teammates and kept them focused after the death of Pelle Lindbergh (while dealing with his own grief) and twice played in the playoffs wearing a flak jacket to protect broken ribs. Unlike Clarke, Poulin was never a Hart Trophy caliber player, but he was a unifying leader. Bright and extremely articulate, he was also an ideal spokesman for the club.
3. Keith Primeau (2001-06): Primeau gets the third spot on the strength of his extraordinary 2004 playoff run and long tenure. The road wasn't always smooth -- Primeau could have handled his role better in Bill Barber's demise as coach, and he had his years of underachieving. But by the end, he'd more than earned the C, and was a take-charge player for most of his tenure as a Flyer.
4. Ed Van Impe (1968-73): The Flyers didn't do much winning in these years, but the groundwork was laid for the success to come. Van Impe brought toughness and set a tone in which players who weren't ready to commit to the club either shaped up or they were gone.
5. Bobby Clarke (1982-84): The Bob McCammon era was a time of missed opportunities and early playoff exits for the Flyers. Clarke was at the end of his career by this point, but still immensely respected. There was some awkwardness in him replacing longtime linemate Bill Barber, and the team (which had so much stability in the 70s) was in a state of transition. Ranked solely on this tenure with no consideration of the first, Clarke still ranks in the top five. His second captaincy wasn't part of the problem with the McCammon teams. Then again, neither was Barber's tenure.
6. Mel Bridgman (1979-81): Tough as nails on the ice, cerebral and articulate away from the game, Bridgman was actually painfully shy in the earliest days of his Flyers career. The leadership role took time for him embrace, but he did it very successfully. As captain of the overachieving team that went a record 35 games without a loss, Bridgman deserves a high ranking. His tenure wasn't a lengthy one, but it was strong.
7. Eric Lindros (1994-2000): I'm not ranking hockey skills or personal on-ice accomplishments as a Flyer. If I were, the Big E would be right behind Clarke. When considering Lindros' tenure as captain, I see someone who at times just wanted to be one of the guys and at other times desperately wanted to lead by deed but didn't always know how to do it effectively. There were legions of times he led by example on the ice, but also many where he seemed oddly out of synch when it counted the most. The weight of expectations made the C like an anchor on his chest at times, although his skill level often shined through anyway.
8. Bill Barber(1981-82): Barber was always a leader by example but worked in the background of Clarke. He didn't get a very long stint as captain, but behaved with characteristic class and dignity when he was asked to give up the C so Clarke could have it back for his second stint. As with Lindros, if individual skill and accomplishments were the criteria, Hall of Fame inductee Barber would be right near the top.
9. Jason Smith (2007-08): He was only a short-term captain because of advancing age and the salary cap, but he was in many ways more valuable as a leader than he was as a player nearing the end of his career. He had his limitations as a player, but no one could ever doubt his toughness and devotion to the team -- other players legitimately looked up to him.
10. Lou Angotti (1967-68): The Flyers' first captain was an ordinary player, but he got everyone on a rag-tag expansion team to buy into Keith Allen's system and win the Western Division. He was the only forward on the Flyers' opening night roster who'd spent the entire previous season in the NHL, so he had a tough task on his hands right off the bat.
11. Mike Richards (2008-2011): Even before Richards set foot in pro hockey, he was labeled a future NHL captain. There were expectations that he would exhibit qualities similar to Clarke's. For whatever reason, Richards never thrived as the Flyers captain even when the team had significant on-ice success and the player had personal success. A player need not be very vocal and give rah-rah or fire-and-brimstone speeches to be an effective captain. He need not be buddy-buddy with members of the media. What he does need to do is know how to get everyone on the same page, keep open two-way communications both among the players and between the players and coaches, to go the extra mile to make newcomers feel like part of the team and to discourage cliques.
Some of the criticisms levied against Richards were unfair, according to his now former teammates. For instance, Andreas Nodl has said that Richards helped him stay upbeat and confident through a massive scoring drought last year. But there was also ample evidence that Richards could not -- or did not really want to -- do the things that separate someone from being a player with a C on his sweater from a true captain.
It was unfair to expect Richards to be the next Clarke or Poulin. It was fair to ask him to put himself out of his comfort zone a little more willingly. When it comes to being captain, little things like reporting to training camp ahead of the must-report date mean more than they would for other players. It sends a message of total commitment. Richards never really accepted the idea that a captain's job responsibilities go way beyond just playing hard, competitive hockey.
On the flip side, you can't dismiss longevity or give Richards no credit for on-ice success that coincided with his tenure. During his time as captain club reached a Stanley Cup Final as well as winning the Atlantic Division in his final season.
Note that I still have Richards ranked lowest among captains who had somewhat lengthy tenures as captain. Those ranked behind him may have been better leaders but either they had the captaincy for too brief a period of time or they had the misfortune of having their captaincy overlap with especially rough periods for the club.
12. Kevin Dineen (1993-94): The feisty forward had a not-ready-for-prime-time team and a so-so coach (Terry Simpson) around him, so he wasn't starting out with much to work with. It also didn't help that Dineen himself was starting to decline as an NHL player the year he was named captain, was extremely prone to undisciplined penalties and was named captain as a way to buy an extra season for Lindros. However, when I think of Dineen, I think of a player who cared deeply about his teams and who worked his tail off every single night.
13. Eric Desjardins (2000-01): "Rico" was universally respected for his meticulous game preparation and outstanding conditioning, but he never really seemed like a dynamic captain. He always seemed to be pretty much exclusively a leader by example. To be fair, he was in the untenable situation of being caught up in the middle of the Lindros feud with team management. He stayed out of the situation and tried to focus strictly on hockey.
14. Ron Sutter (1989-91): A good player, and a good leader. But the team was in a decline and Sutter was put in a terrible position of trying to assume the captaincy mantle after Dave Poulin was asked to step down and then traded to Boston re-acquire an aging Ken Linseman. Sutter never really had a chance to succeed.
15. Rick Tocchet (1991-92): I admire Tocchet as a player and understand that the team had all sorts of problems that had nothing to do with him. But he spent his short, unhappy tenure as captain doing a lot of finger-pointing and, later, campaigning to get out of town at a time when he was just as guilty as everyone else of not playing up to his capabilities. Tocchet's short tenure as captain was by far the biggest blemish on his otherwise stellar first stint as a Flyers player.
16. Peter Forsberg (2006-07): For a myriad of reasons, Foppa's tenure as captain was an utter disaster. The confluence of his chronic foot problems and uncertain contract status made it tough for him to even attempt to be a leader. At the time he was named captain, Forsberg had just gone through reconstructive foot surgery and had recently decided not to have the same surgery on his other foot --- that's why he was in the lineup on opening night when he was originally supposed to be out until Christmas. The guy badly wanted to play, and did everything possible to try.
Meanwhile, it was painfully clear even before the season started that the team that was put on the ice was ill-conceived. Forsberg did the best he could, but the fact that the team had the worst year in franchise history and changed coaches and GMs early in the season while its captain was never to be able again to play more than a few games before his foot acted up made the Flyers a rudderless ship until it was too late to turn things around that season.
Not rated: Derian Hatcher (2006): Like Jason Smith, he did all he could to leave a positive impact while forcing his injury-riddled body through the grind of playing, but Hatch's captaincy tenure was very brief (one half of a season). Regardless of whether he had a C or an A on his sweater, he was a locker room leader and a mentor to younger players. He has carried over those traits to his job as the Flyers' player development coach.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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