"I think one of the most important things I'll take into this is not to change myself or be anybody I'm not," the 36-year-old forward said. "Leadership comes naturally and it comes from years of watching other great leaders, and that's what I've done. Certainly my current coach is one of them."
One of Williams' teammates on the Hurricanes' 2006 Stanley Cup winning team was Rod Brind'Amour, who was hired as coach by Carolina on May 8.
"We have a good relationship (and) we'll continue to have a good relationship," Williams said. "I've talked with Rod quite a bit over the summer. He'll bounce some things off me and maybe I can be his ears (in the locker room) and help out as best I can."
Williams is the 16th captain in Hurricanes history and the eighth since the Hartford Whalers moved to North Carolina in 1997. He had 51 points (16 goals, 35 assists) in 82 games with the Hurricanes last season, third on Carolina in points and assists.
Williams has 733 points (289 goals, 444 assists) in 1,162 games during 17 NHL seasons with the Hurricanes, Philadelphia Flyers, Los Angeles Kings and Washington Capitals, and 94 points (36 goals, 58 assists) in 140 Stanley Cup Playoff games. He won the Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes in 2006 and the Kings in 2012 and 2014, when he won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, scoring 25 points (nine goals, 16 assists) in 26 games.
"[He] is the right captain for us; everyone knows that," Carolina forward Sebastian Aho said. "He's a great leader. I try to watch and learn how he does things. He earned it."
Defenseman Justin Faulk and center Jordan Staal who were Hurricanes co-captains last season, were named alternate captains.
"I think the world of [him] and I think everyone in this room does too," Faulk said. "I don't know if we maybe thought the best situation was co-captains anyways. I don't know if many people did. Obviously that's a weird situation with how things normally work in the National Hockey League. Obviously we weren't in the position to tell you guys that last year. Now we can say it's better to have one guy. That way it's a clear message and no one is wondering whose voice carries what."
The Hurricanes open their season at home against the New York Islanders on Oct. 4.
"It takes a lot of leaders in the dressing room to build a championship team, and that's what we want," Williams said. "The three of us (including Staal and Faulk) will do our best to be the voice of the team and create new leaders out of it."
NHL.com correspondent Kurt Dusterberg contributed to this report.
