Carolina Hurricanes: Top 3 Captain Candidates If Justin Williams Retires

Honorable Mentions

Before we jump into my number one choice for captaincy in the event that Williams does not return, I’d like to speak about a few specific players that just barely missed the cut. The first of these is Justin Faulk.

As you all know, a captain must lead on and off the ice, and must exemplify leadership especially in times of adversity. Justin Faulk is one of the nicest, most personable people you will ever meet, but has been known to make quite a few costly defensive mistakes.

Currently an alternate captain, and formerly the second half of the short-lived co-captaincy era, Faulk exemplifies leadership off the ice remarkably, but falls just short of being the type of leader deserving of full captaincy on the ice.

The second of these is none other than the Fantasic Finn himself, Sebastian Aho. After the whole offer-sheet debacle that has the entirety of Quebec (Montreal, specifically) up in arms, I’d love nothing more than for the Hurricanes to name Sebastian Aho captain while simultaneously holding a Sebastian Aho bobblehead promo for opening night against the Montreal Canadiens, just to further fuel the fire that will inevitably lead to a bitter rivalry.

Not to be underestimated for the captaincy, Aho has demonstrated leadership ability on and off the ice as well, scoring many clutch goals and making many a clutch play when the Hurricanes seemed to be down and out. Honestly, any one of the players on this list would be a great fit to be given the captaincy, but one player stands out above all the others.