NHL: Best Captains in the history of the Chicago Blackhawks
Be it a country, a political group or any sport, each of one them has one main leader who holds the responsibility to guide his people to a brighter future. Many presidents and leaders have come and served for a number of years and made their mark in history, just like that many coaches and players have come in various sports and embedded a deep impression of themselves in history.
Today we will be focusing on the best captains to have ever come in Chicago Blackhawks history in the National Hockey League (NHL).
The Chicago Blackhawks have had many different captains over a several years stretch; some are detested by their fans yet some have shown great skills as a leader, exemplifying their team management skills, proving to be perfect captain material, and are noted legends in the NHL history.
Johnny Gottselig is not only a player who won two Stanley Cups in Blackhawks history but was the first Russian-born player to ever play in the NHL. He did it during the World War II. He won his first Stanley Cup in 1934 and second in 1938 respectively. The left winger played for the Chicago Blackhawks for his entire 17 year career as a professional hockey player. He was true definition of a great leader; after serving as the captain for the team from 1935-1940 he retired and became the coach for the Blackhawks, serving 7 years before retiring. His career record of games played is 589 with 176 goals, 195 assists for 371 points.
One of the most cherished and loved Blackhawk captain was the legend Pierre Pilote. He is a man who retired the jersey No.3 in 1968 but has remained in the hearts of die-hard fans of the Chicago Blackhawks. His tenure as a captain in the Hawks was the longest than any player till date. He was bestowed with the position of captaincy when he helped the Blackhawks capture the Stanley Cup in 1961. Pilote has been featured in many magazines as one of the best captains in the history of hockey and has won the Norris Trophy three times, which is given to the top most defence players.
At a young age of 22 Jonathan Toews has proved to be one of the best players ever to come to the NHL. Experts say he has certainly established a spot in the Blackhawks history as a leader. The Canadian native was made the captain only two years ago and he brought the Stanley Cup to the Blackhawks this year after beating the Philadelphia Flyers by 4-2. Toews owns five gold medals and was named the MVP this year as well. He has also won the Conn Smythe Trophy this year which is given to the most valuable team. For his team Toews did what no other captain could do by breaking the curse of Muldoon after 49 years winning the most prestigious award, Stanley Cup. Toews is the second youngest player to ever win the Stanley Cup after Sidney Crosby.
Chris Chelios was a captain for Blackhawks for five years and might not have achieved a Stanley Cup in his time with the team but he is still considered to be an all time favourite by the Blackhawks enthusiasts. During his tenure with the team he proved to be a great captain, he scored 64 points which earned him a spot on the Second NHL-All Star Team. He also helped the Blackhawks reach the playoff finals in 1992 and were close to obtaining the Stanley Cup until the Pittsburgh Penguins swept them away. Chris had won the Norris Trophy three times and took America into winning their biggest international hockey championship against Canada the same very year.
Tags: