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Missing the 'C' in chemistry Posted: Tuesday December 04, 2001 12:23 AMUpdated: Tuesday December 04, 2001 2:59 AM
Assembling a team used to include more than a cursory nod to the overall mix of the players, with skills, experience and personality all part of the puzzle. An important part of a team's collective mental well-being had to do with how the pieces meshed -- as brought in by the GM, brought together by the coach and galvanized by the captain. A team's identity was something that was developed and nurtured over time. My how times have changed -- on all counts. Teams are seldom given the time to grow together, let alone stay together -- with various external forces exerted on an organization hastening a process that can't be rushed. Today, general managers build and plan almost exclusively according to contracts -- high profile rookies, qualified twenty-somethings, arbitration eligibles, restricted free agents and unrestricted free agents. And not just those broad categories within their organization -- GM's must know the status of every player available and how that might impact the salary "slotting" in his program. With today's complexities, there is little leeway for a GM to heed the need for balance on the bench. That duty falls to the coach, as it always has, but most coaches today inherit teams devoid of inherent continuity. Teams routinely sacrifice players that coaches depend upon in certain situations, equating a player's worth to his role and not his team contribution. Swapping out "players of similar value" might make sense and even be necessary in today's NHL economy, but it wreaks havoc on most coaching sensibilities. Never mind the X's & O's, cohesiveness is all but forsaken and fighting that element alone makes the already complex job of coaching that much more severe. So if the business of the game has altered the ability of GM's and coaches to build solidarity, then the role of the captain becomes even more significant than ever, right? Well, one would think so. Yet, indications are that even the tradition and honor of wearing the 'C' is losing ground to the mounting pressures of immediacy. The deletion of delegated responsibility doesn't end there, with several other players forced to relinquish the 'A' on their jerseys as assistant or alternate captains. Then there is the Minnesota Wild, without a true captain, rotating the distinction on a monthly notion. Is coach Jacques Lemaire's unique approach a best-case admission that his team is too green to have a player worthy of the honor among their ranks? Or, is he simply saying that anyone can be a captain -- that it really isn't a big deal? Well, Eric Desjardins thought it was a big deal in Philadelphia -- too big. He stepped in admirably in the spring of 2000 amidst the Eric Lindros/Bob Clarke melodrama and brought the locker room together in time for an impressive postseason run. This fall, he said the burden of the 'C' was adversely affecting his game. Which is his prerogative -- he is a veteran who made a decision based on what he needs to do -- or not do -- to be prepared to play to the fullest of his capabilities. Even if there is more to the story, the benefit of the doubt resides with Desjardins -- he has earned the right. Meanwhile, in Tampa Bay, that was exactly the message coach John Tortorella had for Vincent Lecavalier -- I think -- when the young prodigy returned to the lineup after a contract holdout. "You have to earn the right to be a captain in this league." So, Tortorella unceremoniously stripped Lecavalier of the captaincy, giving him Pavel Kubina's 'A' instead. Two young players defrocked in one move meant to teach. I understand Tortorella's position that Lecavalier needs to learn from the veterans first before he wears the 'C' -- that he was not ready for the role. Well, look around the league beyond the legendary captains like Steve Yzerman, Mark Messier, Joe Sakic and Scott Stevens. There are plenty of young captains currently making an impact as well, including Markus Naslund in Vancouver, Daniel Alfredsson in Ottawa and Michael Peca for the Islanders. All are in their 20s and older than Lecavalier -- but go back to Yzerman and Sakic. Remember that both became captains when they were youngsters -- while their teams were rebuilding. Surrounded by an ever-improving mix of veterans, Lecavalier could certainly learn as did Yzerman and Sakic. He would get the proper guidance, grow into the role and keep his dignity -- not to mention his confidence. Besides, given all the variables in concocting a team, what is the value in subtracting the 'C' from the franchise’s pivotal and promising player? As team chemistry goes, the answer equals zero ... and that is still a failing grade, even today. Darren Eliot, a former NHL goaltender, is a hockey analyst for CNN/Sports Illustrated and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com.
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