Oilers Name Bouchard and Hyman as New Alternate Captains

Defenceman Evan Bouchard and forward Zach Hyman have both been named alternate captains, joining Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins in wearing an “A”, while Connor McDavid will continue to serve as Edmonton’s captain.

New Alternates Succeed Nurse

A change to Edmonton’s leadership group was expected, following the offseason trade of defenceman Darnell Nurse to the San Jose Sharks. Nurse had served as an alternate captain of the Oilers for the last seven seasons.

While Edmonton has gone through many coaches, the Oilers have seen remarkable stability in their player leadership over the last several years: These changes mark the first additions or subtractions to Edmonton’s group of captains since 2021.

McDavid is heading to his 11^th season as captain, a franchise record. This will be Nugent-Hopkins’ 12^th season as an alternate captain, also an Oilers record, while Draisaitl first served as alternate captain in 2019-20.

Oilers Have Large Leadership Group

While it’s not at all uncommon in hockey for a team to have four alternate captains, this will be Edmonton’s largest leadership group since 2020-21, when blueliner Adam Larsson wore an “A” alongside Draisaitl, Nugent-Hopkins and Nurse.

After Larsson departed during the 2021 offseason, joining the Seattle Kraken, the Oilers elected to not name another alternate captain in Larsson’s place.

Bouchard and Hyman Are Experienced Captains

Though neither has done so as a member of the Oilers, wearing a letter is nothing new for either Bouchard or Hyman.

Bouchard served as captain of the London Knights in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) for two seasons, 2017-18 and 2018-19, and was an alternate captain for Team Canada at the 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship.

Hyman also served as captain of his junior team for two seasons, wearing the “C” for the Hamilton Red Wings in the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) in 2009-10 and 2010-11. He later served as an alternate captain, for his senior year at the University of Michigan in 2014-15, and in his final season with the Toronto Maple Leafs before joining the Oilers.

New Alternates Are Easy Choices

It makes sense that both Bouchard and Hyman would be bestowed the “A”, given that choosing just one could have been seen as disrespecting the other.

With the exceptions of Nugent-Hopkins (15 seasons as an Oiler), Draisaitl (12), and McDavid (11) Bouchard is Edmonton’s longest tenured player, having first suited up for the team in 2018-19. The 26-year-old has become a star, now regarded as one of the top two or three offensive blueliners in the NHL.

After Bouchard, the next-longest tenured Oiler is Hyman, who is entering his sixth year in Edmonton. Since signing with the Oilers as a free-agent during the 2021 offseason, the 34-year-old winger has scored 212 total goals (regular season and playoffs combined), which ranks 10th in the NHL over that span.

Ekholm Also Has Worthy Resume

As for the rest of the Oilers who will not be wearing a letter, there’s one player that jumps out as having the resume to be an alternate captain: 36-year-old defenceman Mattias Ekholm.

The native of Borlange, Sweden checks both the “veteran” and “experience” boxes: he’s the oldest skater on the Oilers and has played the second most career NHL games among all players on Edmonton’s roster, behind only Nugent-Hopkins.

Ekholm served as an alternate captain of the Nashville Predators for several seasons before being dealt to the Oilers in 2023 and has worn an “A” for Sweden in international competition, including at the World Championship and the 4 Nations Face Off. He’s logged big minutes alongside Bouchard on Edmonton’s top defensive pairing and has been the best all-around defenceman on the team the last few seasons, though Father Time may be starting to catch up with him.

Wearing a Letter Is Important to Oilers

While wearing a letter is largely a symbolic gesture, no one outside of the Oilers locker room can assess the significance and impact of the designation.

However, considering the Oilers are adjusting to playing for a new coach, Mike Babcock, whose methods have been called into a question, while also dealing with all the distractions that come with the controversial addition of forward Alex Formenton, if there was one season where the captain and alternate captains are needed and could make a difference, this would be it.

The Oilers opened their preseason schedule with a 5-2 home victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday (Sept. 19). They’re back in action on Tuesday (Sept. 22) when they visit the Jets at Canada Life Centre.