* As far as Andrew Ference knows, he'll be the Oilers captain again this season. If he's not, he knows who it should be, but he's not saying. The defenseman has been the Oilers captain for two seasons, since he signed as a free agent on July 5, 2013 after six-plus seasons with the Boston Bruins. Ference said he addressed his captaincy with new coach Todd McLellan shortly after he was hired May 19.
Ference told the Edmonton Journal: "It's not like I'm going to give you a list, but I definitely know who I'd pick. It's not my anointment. Some guys are rounding into that. You need multiple guys in a leadership role, though, with or without the letter, to where they can take the reins. You can't just have one guy carrying the flag. You need a mob mentality to be successful. I brought it up … I like things out in the open," Ference said. "I don't like walking on eggshells or awkward moments, player to coach, player to GM. This isn't a vanity project. We should want everybody pulling on the same rope for the Oilers."
"Anybody can be captain … the way I look at it is, who would be the same person with or without it? It shouldn't change who you are as a person. Some guys who have the captaincy can elevate their role and how they feel, but how they act and who they are? That shouldn't change. Doing the day-in, day-out leadership stuff should be the same with or without it. That's the sign somebody's ready for the captaincy."
* Forwards Jordan Eberle and Taylor Hall were the Oilers alternate captains last season. Eberle (25), Hall (23) and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (22) form Edmonton's young core, which likely will add Connor McDavid (18), the No. 1 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, this season.
Calgary
* Mark Giordano got the long-term contract he and the Flames were seeking. But there was something missing. Giordano signed a six-year contract extension reportedly worth $40.5 million, an average annual value of $6.75 million. Giordano, the Flames captain, was leading NHL defensemen with 48 points (11 goals, 37 assists) when he sustained a torn biceps tendon Feb. 25 in a game against the New Jersey Devils. He did not play again.
GM Brad Treliving: "In my opinion, if he didn't unfortunately go down with an injury, he's sitting here with a Norris Trophy. We know what he can do on the ice. For those who are around our team, we know what [Giordano] does the other 22 hours a day. He's a leader in every sense of this organization. It's a good feeling for us knowing that we've got him signed long-term. Moving forward, he can continue to do what he does, and that is lead this team."
"We like what it is on paper, but we all know what paper means; not a whole lot once you get going. It will be a work in progress. Adding Dougie to the mix, he's going to have to find his way. The coaches will figure out how that is going to shape up, but I like the versatility. We've got lefties, we've got righties, people that can play both sides of special teams, there's depth."
"[Mark] obviously wanted to make sure that him and his family were looked after, but he really took a leadership role in looking after the Flames family.… The object is to win. …You can't just have one player or two players. You need a whole team, and knowing what's in front of us, we've still got a young developing team, and at some point, everybody wants to be taken care of, and we've got to have the ability to do that, and Mark fully understood that."
* After surgery, Giordano said he would be ready for training camp in September. Giordano has been Flames captain since 2013 and has played his entire NHL career with Calgary. He has 66 goals, 179 assists and 466 penalty minutes in 510 regular-season games. Giordano turns 32 on Oct. 3 and is entering the final season of a five-year contract that carries a $4.02 million salary-cap charge. Giordano is part of a strong group of defensemen that includes TJ Brodie, Kris Russell, Dennis Wideman and newcomer Dougie Hamilton. Giordano, Brodie and Hamilton are each signed through at least the 2019-20 season. Giordano, who played 61 games last season, finished sixth in voting for the Norris Trophy, which was won by Erik Karlsson of the Ottawa Senators.
Giordano told the Calgary Sun: "I'm looking forward to getting into an exhibition game. Hopefully, I'll get into a nice home game with the feeling of the crowd and all that. It'll be cool. I want to get my timing and that feeling you miss because I haven't had that experience in quite a while. People want to say I left money [by not] going into free agency, but the term the team gave me, six years, is really good. I will be 33 when the contract starts and I looked at that. And I also look at it and know we have a lot of good up-and-coming players in the coming years, and our organization has to make sure it can take care of that also."The Flames qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2009 and defeated the Vancouver Canucks in the Western Conference First Round before losing to the Anaheim Ducks. Top-line forwards Johnny Gaudreau, Jiri Hudler and Sean Monahan each can become a free agent after this season (Gaudreau and Monahan will be restricted).
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