Giordano named first captain of Kraken

Mark Giordano was named the first captain of the Seattle Kraken on Monday.

The 38-year-old defenseman will be Seattle's on-ice leader when it begins its inaugural season at the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday (10 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS).
Giordano said general manager Ron Francis and coach Dave Hakstol delivered the news to him Sunday.
"I'm honored obviously to be given responsibility to be captain of this group of guys and a new organization, a new team," Giordano said. "It means a lot to myself. I told them yesterday I'll try to do everything I can to lead the group the best way I can. It means a lot to me to be given this responsibility, for sure."
The Kraken also announced that defenseman Adam Larsson and forwards Yanni Gourde, Jordan Eberle and Jaden Schwartz will rotate as alternate captains.
"It was a process that went throughout training camp and it was our staff ... it was Ron and his staff, and just observing and being around our team," Hakstol said. "As we went through camp, it became evident that this is the right group to lead our hockey team."
Giordano was selected by the Kraken from the Calgary Flames in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft on July 21. He had been Flames captain since 2013.
"I think I have a lot more experience now," Giordano said. "I think there are different situations that come up when you're a captain and hopefully now I have more experience and can deal with certain situations the right way. At the end of the day, I think the captain of a hockey team has to be a guy who brings the guys together but relays messages from management and coaching to the players. It's a great, great responsibility, but I can't be more thankful to organization for placing that trust in me."
Giordano played his first 15 NHL seasons for the Flames after signing as an undrafted free agent July 6, 2004. He scored 509 points (143 goals, 366 assists) in 949 regular-season games, including 26 points (nine goals, 17 assists) in 56 games last season, and has scored seven points (one goal, six assists) in 23 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
He won the Norris Trophy voted as the best defenseman in the NHL in 2019 and the Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award in 2020.
"I always look at the best leaders in the League as guys who help their team win games, play in all key situations," Giordano said. "Looking forward to having a good start here to the season individually, but more importantly as a team. I mean, it's important for us to get out, have a good start, get some confidence rolling and go from there."
Eberle was claimed from the New York Islanders in the expansion draft. He scored 33 points (16 goals, 17 assists) in 55 games last season.
He lives in Calgary during the offseason and said Giordano was the right choice to be captain.
"A lot of people obviously see the work he puts in on the ice and the leadership capabilities that he has," Eberle said. "But being from Calgary, I know firsthand the leadership role that he has in the community, whether it's charities or the little things he's doing inside of Calgary. We're lucky to have him and obviously an easy decision in my mind."
Gourde was claimed in the expansion draft from the Tampa Bay Lightning, who he helped win the Stanley Cup the past two seasons. He scored 36 points (17 goals, 19 assists) in 56 regular-season games and seven points (six goals, one assist) in 23 playoff games last season. He is day to day but skating following offseason shoulder surgery.
Schwartz signed a five-year, $27.5 million contract ($5.5 million average annual value) with the Kraken on July 28. He scored 21 points (eight goals, 13 assists) in 40 games last season for the St. Louis Blues, with whom he won the Stanley Cup in 2019.
"It's a huge honor and I'm super excited to join the leadership group," Schwartz said. "Great group of guys, guys who have been in the League for a while and experienced. It's just a huge honor to be part of lthe eadership group here in Seattle. We're excited to get this thing going tomorrow and it's going to be a lot of fun."
Larsson, who was selected from the Edmonton Oilers in the expansion draft, scored 10 points (four goals, six assists) in 56 games last season. He had been an alternate the past four seasons with the Oilers.
"It's an honor, first of all to get called [alternate] captain and I'll do my best to lead on and off the ice," he said.
Six NHL teams do not have a captain: the Flames, Arizona Coyotes, Buffalo Sabres, Columbus Blue Jackets, New York Rangers and Ottawa Senators. The Montreal Canadiens likely won't have one on the ice this season after general manager Marc Bergevin said Sept. 6 that a replacement will not be named for defenseman Shea Weber, who is expected to be out the entire season because of injuries. Center Jack Eichel was stripped of Buffalo's captaincy Sept. 23 after he failed his physical at training camp and was placed on injured reserve.