Red Wings will go without captain this season; 4 players will wear 'A'

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings will go without a designated team captain this season after Henrik Zetterberg's career ended due to injury. 

Instead of a designated captain, the Red Wings have named four players as alternate captains: Dylan Larkin, Frans Nielsen, Niklas Kronwall and Justin Abdelkader. These players will wear an "A" on their sweaters. The team announced Larkin will wear the "A" at home while Nielsen will wear it during road games. The other two always will have the "A" when they are playing. 

Zetterberg wore the "C" for Detroit since 2013. There was a short gap between his captaincy and Nicklas Lidstrom's due to the lockout-shortened season of 2012-13. Lidstrom left at the end of the 2011-12 season but the following NHL season did not begin until January 2013. That's when Zetterberg was named captain. 

Of course, before Lidstrom assumed the role Steve Yzerman wore the "C" for the Red Wings from 1986 to 2006. 

NHL teams are not required to have a captain. However, the captain is the only player allowed to speak to officials on the ice about rules and infractions. If there is no captain, then the alternate captain assumes that responsibility. 

NHL teams are allowed to appoint a captain and up to two alternate captains for each game, or as in the case of the Red Wings three alternate captains and no captain. 

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