Patrick Kane will wear an A for the Chicago Blackhawks this season, one of two alternate captains named heading into training camp.
Tyler Bertuzzi gets the other letter, according to Blackhawks insider Ben Pope on Tuesday. Two very different resumes now share the same leadership job. As you already know, Connor Bedard is the new captain.
Kane is 37 years old and coming off a season with 57 points in 67 games. That's still top-six playmaking at an age when most wingers are already golfing full time.
He racked up 41 assists last year, more helpers than plenty of Blackhawks forwards managed in total points. The vision clearly hasn't slowed down, whatever the calendar says.
Bertuzzi carried a heavier load, 79 games played with 32 goals. But he also finished at a minus-16 rating, a number that tells you how rough last season got in Chicago.
The Blackhawks finished 29-39-14, sitting 31st overall in the league with a minus-62 goal differential. Nobody in that room wants a repeat of that.
Jeff Blashill takes over as head coach this fall. Naming Kane and Bertuzzi as alternates is his first real signal on who he trusts to set the tone in that room.
Bertuzzi's leadership role grows after a rough season
Bertuzzi scored 11 power play goals last season, still Chicago's most dangerous net-front presence even while the roster around him collapsed.
Kane closed things out differently. He put up 13 points over his final 10 games, the kind of finish that makes a front office comfortable handing him a letter.
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For a franchise that just posted the league's worst goal differential, the message out of camp is simple. The kids get the minutes. The old guy and the grinder get the voice in the room.
Should Patrick Kane have been named full captain instead of just an alternate?
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