Top 5 Captains In Vancouver Canucks History

By Shaun Lavery

Top 5 Captains In Vancouver Canucks History

Vancouver Canuck Greats — The Vancouver Canucks are a franchise that has been around since 1970, and although they’ve been around for a little while, they still have no Stanley Cup championships. They have, however, found some success with two President Trophies, three Western Conference championships and 10 Divisional titles. Vancouver has also had some great players serve as captains in their history, and here are the five best.

5. Mark Messier (1997-2000)

Mark Messier

5. Mark Messier (1997-2000)

Mark Messier — Playing only three seasons for the Canucks towards the end of his career, Mark Messier served as captain the whole time he was in Vancouver. He never had the great statistics that he did with the Edmonton Oilers and New York Rangers, but he is still the second highest scorer of all-time, which is more than enough to keep him on this list. His 1,887 points in 1,756 career games is simply remarkable.

4. Henrik Sedin (2010-present)

Henrik Sedin Vancouver Canucks

4. Henrik Sedin (2010-present)

Henrik Sedin Vancouver Canucks — Serving as captain since 2010, Henrik Sedin lead the Vancouver Canucks to a President Trophy and a Stanley Cup Final. He has spent his whole career with the Canucks thus far, totalling 1,054 games played and 880 points. Sedin is a quite leader, and he has done great charitable work in the Vancouver area, along with his twin brother, Daniel Sedin.

3. Stan Smyl (1982-90)

Stan Smyl Vancouver Canucks

3. Stan Smyl (1982-90)

Stan Smyl Vancouver Canucks — After Kevin McCarthy broke his ankle in practice, Stan Smyl was named captain of the Canucks in 1982. He eventually became the longest serving captain in Canucks history, leading the team for eight seasons. He had a good start to his captaincy, leading his team to the Cup Finals in 1982, then setting a career high in points the next season. He is one of four players to have his number retired by Vancouver.

2. Markus Naslund (2000-08)

Markus Naslund Vancouver Canucks

2. Markus Naslund (2000-08)

Markus Naslund Vancouver Canucks — Playing for 12 seasons with Vancouver after being traded from the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1996, Markus Naslund is one of the greatest Canucks to ever play. He won team MVP five times and was the Canucks’ leading scorer for seven consecutive seasons. He was the first European-born player to be named captain for Vancouver, and he collected 869 points in 1,117 career games.

1. Trevor Linden (1991-97)

Trevor Linden Vancouver Canucks

1. Trevor Linden (1991-97)

Trevor Linden Vancouver Canucks — Named captain of the team at the age of 21, Trevor Linden is one of the youngest players ever to serve as captain. He played 16 seasons with Vancouver, over two seperate stints, and totaled 867 points in his career. Linden was known for his strong leadership skills on and off the ice, and was a great contributor charitably in the Vancouver community. He now serves as President of Hockey Operations and Alternate Governor of the Canucks.

Shaun Lavery is a Calgary Flames writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter, or add him to your network on Google.

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