"The symbolism should not be lost on anyone when, mere minutes apart, Shawn Horcoff dons the 'C' and Sheldon Souray goes to the 'A.' Horcoff assumed his rightful role as the Oilers' 13th captain and Souray assumed the position of Hershey pariah. That's Hershey, Pa. for short. That's where the Oilers sent their disgruntled defenceman Wednesday, to the American Hockey League with no promise of a speedy trade or even an eventual return to the National Hockey League through costly, risky re-entry waivers. He could be stuck there all year, if the Oilers set the cost of vengeance at $4.5 million U.S. The math says what the Oilers' brass wouldn't, that they don't trust him to do or say the right things any longer. The 'C' says the reverse is true of Horcoff . Both men are respected 30-something veterans who served as alternate captains of that sinking Oilers ship last year, so the diversity of their current stations in life is quite telling. Be seen and heard to do and say all the right things a la Horcoff , even while sharing culpability for a season gone wrong, and a rebuilding franchise slaps its most important letter on your chest. But carve up that already floundering organization while delivering a selfish trade demand and they slap a Hershey luggage tag on the mountain of baggage you accumulated by choosing to be open-mouthed instead of open-minded. "I've been an Oiler all my life. I've put a lot of hard work and a lot of effort into becoming the best pro and Oiler I could be," Horcoff said after slipping into his new jersey. "I look forward to doing that for many more years and trying to help the young guys do that also." He'll groom the next captain, too, be it Sam Gagner, Taylor Hall or my early pick, Jordan Eberle. But for now the leadership core will be fleshed out with two alternates tonight as the Oilers open the season against the Calgary Flames. I'm betting on Ales Hemsky and one of either Ryan Whitney or Tom Gilbert. There will be continuity in that crowd, and some of them must atone for their roles, passive or not, in last season's unravelling. The perception of a leadership problem on this team perched itself albatross-like on the shoulders of the holdovers last year and whether fair or not, it needs to be removed. Fortunately, the strongest of those returnees has the 'C' and the attendant responsibility for keeping this ship on an even keel. Horcoff will lead by example and the masses will surely follow him into the weight room, into the dressing room to face the media after even the most excruciating losses, into the community to meet the public. And if they all work as hard as he does and enjoy a little bit of luck and a lot of health, they will all follow him to a bounce-back season that will wipe away the stench of last year, which was a disaster on and off the ice in spite of and because of things the leaders were doing here." http://www.edmontonjournal.com/spor... different Oilers captains/3636211/story.html
