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Looking for leadership: Who is the next St Louis Blues Captain?

Colorado Avalanche v St. Louis Blues

ST. LOUIS, MO - APRIL 5: David Backes #42 of the St. Louis Blues takes a shot on goal against the Colorado Avalanche at the Scottrade Center on April 5, 2011 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)

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Trading a captain away used to be a mortal sin for an organization. If players tended to stay with the same organization for the duration of their careers, the captains would stay part of the organization for the rest of their lives. Can anyone imagine Maurice Richard, Jean Beliveau or Bob Gainey wearing anything other than the bleu blanc et rouge? Would the Red Wings ever trade Alex Delvecchio or even Steve Yzerman? Would the Boston Bruins ever trade Raymond Bou… nevermind.

Like many other things around the NHL, time brings change.

Over the course of the offseason, the New York Rangers have let their captain Chris Drury walk away and the Philadelphia Flyers have traded Mike Richards to the Kings. Adam Foote has retired in Colorado and Doug Weight has done the same in Long Island. But even more surprising, the Sabres, Devils, and Blues all traded their captains in the middle of the season last year. Craig Rivet was sitting in the press box by the time he was traded from the Sabres and Jaime Langenbrunner was fighting with Jacques Lemaire by the time he was sent out of town. But for the Blues, sending Captain Eric Brewer to the Lightning was a move that truly sent their leader to a new team.

As important as offseason acquisitions are for the Blues, perhaps the most important decision in shaping the team this offseason will be selecting the next captain of the proud franchise.

Returning to the team this season are all three alternate captains: Alex Steen, Barret Jackman, and David Backes. Elsewhere on the roster, Andy McDonald has provided leadership over the last four seasons and star-in-the-making Alex Pietrangelo wore the “A” for Team Canada in the 2010 World Junior Championships. The team has also welcomed veteran leaders and former NHL captains Jason Arnott and Jamie Langenbrunner to the team via free agency. For a team that traded away their leader at the deadline last season, the Blues certainly have their share of candidates to replace Brewer as captain for next season.

For our money, it’s hard to imagine a better captain for the Blues than David Backes. He’s the heart and soul of their young core combining skill, grit, and leadership in one powerful package. The 27-year-old is a two-time 30-goal scorer in the NHL and has only missed three games over the last three seasons. He’s represented the United States in the World Championships three times, was a member of Team USA’s silver medal winning team in the 2010 Winter Olympics, and was an all-star for the first time in his career last season. But more important than any stats that show up on his resume, it’s the way Backes plays the game that makes him the ideal leader for the Blues. He’s the type of player that would do anything for his team—whether its spark his teammates with a body check, an important goal, or even a fight.
David Rogers from the Blues blog FrozenNotes.com agrees:

“Backes leads by example. He goes to the dirty areas of the ice and has no fear throwing his body around. Quite often, his physical play helps create scoring chances in the first place, by disrupting the other team’s flow of play. If he needs to stand up for his teammates, he will. If he needs to scrap, he will – and boy has he, just ask Team Canada.

Backes leads the Blues in plenty of offensive categories, but it is his overall play through the intangibles that will likely result in him leading the Blues as the team’s captain in the not too distant future.”

Last season, he signed a 5-year contract extension worth $22.5 million meaning he should be in town until at least 2016. Assuming the Blues don’t trade him after signing him to a long-term extension (see: Philadelphia Flyers), Backes would be an ideal candidate to lead the young team for the foreseeable future.