Avalanche Name Gabriel Landeskog Captain For 2012-2013 Season

The Colorado Avalanche have announced that forward Gabriel Landeskog will be named team captain for the 2012-2013 season.

Landeskog, 19, will be the youngest captain in NHL history, breaking the record set by Sidney Crosby in 2007. The second overall selection in the 2011 NHL Draft, Landeskog thrived in his first full season in the NHL. As a rookie, Landeskog led the Avalanche in goals, hits, shots, and game winning goals and was a landslide winner for the Calder Trophy given to Most Outstanding Rookie.

During the 2011-2012 season, the Avalanche played the first two months without a captain as multiple players rotated out assistant captain duties between games. Veteran Milan Hejduk was named captain on November 14, 2011, though he struggled in a career-worst season. According to NHL.com, Hejduk has "relinquished his role" to the captaincy. He will be joined by Paul Stastny as assistant captains.

Landeskog will be just the fourth captain since the franchise moved to Denver before the 1995-1996 season. Joe Sakic served in the role from 1995 until his retirement at the end of the 2009-2010 season. Defenseman Adam Foote served a single season as captain from 2010-2011. Hejduk's tenure lasted a single season as well.

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