By Nick Obergan After the Stanley Cup Finals and before Free Agency began (and immediately died off, as it seems), I foresaw ten NHL teams that could or should be naming new captains for the upcoming year. The first was a given, one that I saw happening before even last season ended: Dion Phaneuf being named captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs. A second captaincy change has just been made, and was also easy to predict. After trading their captain Jason Arnott, the Nashville Predators had a leadership role to fill and they absolutely picked the right man for the job when they named Shea Weber captain. Weber has spent all five of his pro seasons in Nashville, and is the fifth captain since their 1998 inception. The one major difference: Weber is the first captain that was drafted by Nashville. He won?t be 25-years-old until August, but has already been an All-Star, an Olympic gold medalist, named to the All-Olympic team, has three times scored more than 15 goals, and has previously served as an assistant captain. Next up: long term extension. Here are the other eight that should happen in my opinion, and very well may in most cases. Anaheim Ducks With their former captain Scott Niedermayer retiring, the captaincy is up for grabs in Anaheim. Two wily veterans with a lot of leadership experience could step into the role: former Montreal Canadiens captain Saku Koivu, who resigned for two more years, or Teemu Selanne if he chooses to play another year. However the best choice would be Ryan Getzlaf. Already an assistant captain, the choice of Getzlaf would signal commitment to building around him as their centrepiece. The 25-year-old is signed for three more seasons, and is one of the top two-way forwards in the game who leads by example. He plays very strong in all areas, and plays through injury (as he did at the end of last season and the Olympics). In five seasons, the playmaker has twice scored more than 80 points, and three times dishing out over 50 assists. Vancouver Canucks This may be a controversial choice, as they already have a captain who is signed for a very long time: Roberto Luongo. But even more controversial is the original choice of naming a goaltender as team captain. For starters, goalies are not permitted to wear the ?C? on their jerseys and are not allowed to partake in important discussions and decisions with the referees during the game. Now, the Canucks are looking to make some changes after two straight disappointing playoff exits. One of the goats in those losses has been Luongo (as the goalie often is). Personally, I see a perfect captain already on their roster in Ryan Kesler. He looks to be a born leader, holding others accountable, holding himself accountable, media friendly, and one of the best defensive forwards in the game. In this past year, his sixth, he had a career-high 75 points. The 25-year-old (see a pattern?) was one of the best players on Team USA at the Olympics and recently signed a long-term contract to stay in Vancouver for six more years. Montreal Canadiens Montreal went through all of last season without a captain. Their long serving captain, Koivu, was permitted to leave via free agency so that the team could turn the page and try to make a fresh start. It resulted in a number of players wearing the ?A? but not the ?C? (Hal Gill, Brian Gionta, Mike Cammalleri, Andrei Markov, Scott Gomez). After last season?s historic run through the playoffs, it would be wise for Montreal to continue the feel-good momentum and name a captain. Hal Gill was their leader in the playoffs, but he is only signed for one more season. Offensively, and in the media, they were led by Cammalleri and Gionta, and both are signed for four more seasons. A choice of either would provide leadership stability for the foreseeable future. Cammalleri is younger (28-years-old to Gionta?s 31), has some star potential and is warm and laughable with the media. Gionta is the wily veteran, tougher than his 5?7? frame would lead you to believe, and a leader by example. San Jose Sharks Much like Anaheim, the Sharks lost their captain to retirement. Many in the playoffs were pegging Joe Pavelski as the captain of the future in San Jose, but I don?t think the coaches will go that route just yet with so many veterans on the team. While Patrick Marleau was the former captain, I think that bridge has long been burned and don?t expect him to retain his role. Joe Thornton is an interesting option. He has been a captain in the past (on the Bruins), and seemed to finally expel his playoff demons with a strong post season this past year, leading the Sharks past the second round for the first time since 2004. If they can sign him to an extension this summer (he is entering the last year of his deal). But if it were me, I would name Dan Boyle captain. He is signed for four more years, and assumed plenty of leadership responsibilities in the playoffs when he bounced back from his own-goal against Colorado in the first round. I think he is a stronger character and role model than Thornton, despite the lack of star power. Atlanta Thrashers Atlanta?s situation is a little more murky than the rest. The franchise has been seeking a long-term leader since their existence, having seven captains since their beginning in 1999. The current captaincy void was created with their high profile trade of ex-captain Ilya Kovalchuk, which leaves two assistant captains on the roster from last season: defensemen Ron Hainsey and Zach Bogosian. Bogosian will only turn 20 this summer and just completed his second season in the league. It appears that he has the makings of a captain at some point, but it may be too soon to anoint him captain right now (they also have to get him signed to a long deal, as he is entering the final year of his rookie contract). Hainsey, 29, is one of the more veteran players on the squad and could very well be named captain if they feel the need to name someone immediately. Atlanta?s top two players, Nik Antropov and Tobias Enstrom, don?t appear to have the leadership capabilities to be named captain. It looks more likely that Atlanta will employ three assistant captains instead of naming a captain next year, but if they name one I think Hainsey is the guy. Edmonton Oilers Also murky is the Oilers? captaincy situation. As the franchise embarks on a complete rebuild, one of the casualties was ex-captain Ethan Moreau. 1st overall pick Taylor Hall looks to be a likely choice as captain of the future, but it can?t be expected that he will be named captain in his rookie season. Still on the roster are assistant captains Ales Hemsky, Shawn Horcoff and Sheldon Souray. It?s not likely that Souray be named captain, though he has the leadership skills and experience; his bridge was burned when he requested a trade and the Oilers can?t seem to get rid of him for free. Horcoff, the team?s highest paid player, has vastly underperformed since signing his huge contract. Hemsky is perhaps the team?s top offensive player, and has played all seven of his NHL seasons in Edmonton, so he is as good a bet as any to be named captain if they choose a replacement this season. St. Louis Blues There have been endless rumblings about St. Louis? likely captaincy change this season. Current captain Eric Brewer, while a quality leader, has been underwhelming in his stint in St. Louis after coming over in the Chris Pronger trade. But he can?t really be blamed for unrealistic expectations. He is a solid second pair defenseman without much of an offensive game, there was simply too much expected of him because he came over in a trade for an elite defenseman. David Backes is expected to be the next captain for the Blues. While he had a down year last year (17 goals, 48 points), he scored 31 goals in 2008-09 and the 26-year-old looks to be their top offensive performer for some time, so long as they can extend him past this season. Florida Panthers It will surprise a lot of people to see Florida on the list, and I will admit it?s a bit of a stretch. They do have a current veteran captain in Bryan McCabe, and there hasn?t been many trade rumours at all involving him. But Florida has a new GM, and are embarking on a solid rebuilding effort that started with a 3rd overall pick, and the trades of Keith Ballard and Nathan Horton. One would think that McCabe is indeed a candidate to be dealt this year. He is a solid offensive defenseman who is on the last year of his deal, and I am sure contenders will be looking at him before the deadline, if not sooner. After the big deals were made, current assistant captain Stephen Weiss was left, and it seemed as though the GM had no interest in trading him at all. Weiss is a solid top-6 forward who has yet to reach his potential-first line ceiling. The 27-year-old is coming off of back-to-back 60 point seasons and could blossom as the team?s go-to offensive performer this season. Nick can be reached via email [email protected] or @NickObergan