The Philadelphia Flyers have named their new team captain after years of going without someone wearing “C” on their sweater. Announced by the team on Wednesday evening, the Flyers have made Sean Couturier the 20th captain in franchise history.
Couturier’s legacy in Philadelphia doesn’t need to be explained too much. The former first-round pick has been drafted and developed by the Flyers and they have seen individual success — winning a Selke Trophy, and deserving many more — and team success as well, like a few runs into the playoffs.
“Sean Couturier is an ideal choice to be the next leader of the Philadelphia Flyers,” said Flyers general manager Danny Briere in the team’s press release. “Sean was drafted here and has made Philadelphia his home. I have personally seen his development from a responsible forward to one of the best two-way centermen in the game and a playoff performer. The adversity he has had to overcome has only strengthened his proven leadership. In this New Era of Orange with Dan Hilferty, Keith Jones and John Tortorella at the helm, we couldn’t be more proud to call him captain.”
Already, at 31 years old, the two-way center has played over 770 games for the Flyers and with a contract going through the 2029-30 season, he should play many more and eventually reach a tier of Flyers where his name should be enshrined among the long-time greats. Through his career so far, Couturier has scored 191 goals and 493 total points while consistently being one of the best 200-foot centers in the NHL. His on-ice contributions speak for themselves.
“It’s such a great honor. It’s a really prestigious organization so this makes it even more special. This city is my home and I love it here,” said Couturier via the Flyers. “It’s going to be business as usual for me. Nothing is really going to change from me or my game and how I approach things. I love my teammates, how we have grown as a group and I want to make sure we keep going on the right path here.”
This decision to make Couturier captain was probably a pretty easy one. Compared to other members of the current leadership core, such as Scott Laughton and Travis Konecny, Couturier will certainly be in Philadelphia the longest and is the safest option considering the legacy of the letter. The Flyers have gone without a captain since trading Claude Giroux to the Florida Panthers in the 2021-22 season, but Couturier is just the lay-up choice to take over for such a memorable and special player leading this team.
Couturier was most likely going to be named the next captain, but unfortunately suffered a injury that kept him off the ice for almost two years and missed the entire 2022-23 season. This is just speculation, but we wonder if his absence caused the delay in this announcement, and the team had to determine if he was back to his normal on-ice self to place the letter on his chest.
Either way, Couturier’s legacy in Philadelphia has only grown stronger with him being officially named a captain.
Additionally, as part of Couturier being named captain, the Flyers also named the complete leadership group. Scott Laughton was already an alternate captain before the announcement but now, Travis Konecny has been named the team’s second alternate going forward.
