Andrei Markov Declines Captaincy; Coach Jacques Martin Never Offered It

(Photo by Richard Wolowicz/Getty Images)

The speculation surrounding the 28th captain of the Montreal Canadiens continues to swirl.

After a story from the Montreal Gazette reported that Andrei Markov declined the captaincy offered to him by the club, head coach Jacques Martin has denied any reports that he or GM Bob Gainey offered the captaincy to Markov or any other player.

Speculation has been said that Markov is the top choice in being named the successor to Saku Koivu as the leader of the Canadiens.

Other players named as being possible candidates to wear the "C" are Maxim Lapierre, newcomer Scott Gomez, and dark horse Josh Gorges, who captained the Kelowna Rockets to a Memorial Cup in 2004.

Francois Gagnon of the Gazette has also thrown his nomination for captain to defenseman Roman Hamrlik.

Martin has said that both he and Gainey will announce the successor for Koivu at the end of training camp.

With Lapierre, the Canadiens will have a French-Canadian captain, something that will resonate with the fans. With Gorges, there is a leadership quality that he understands. He's won at a level as a captain in the Memorial Cup and knows what it takes to be a captain.

With Hamrlik, there is experience and he resonates with the European players in the dressing room, as does Markov.

However, despite not being officially offered the captaincy, Markov's hesitant attitude towards being captain has proven that he will not be the choice of the coach and GM and will not be wearing the "C" anytime in his career with the Canadiens.

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