Oilers to update captaincy later this week: Chiarelli

Edmonton Oilers general manager Peter Chiarelli told the Oilers website Monday there will be an announcement later this week regarding the captaincy for this season, according to the Oilers' website.

Andrew Ference was named Oilers captain on Sept. 29, 2013, prior to the start of his first season in Edmonton.

However, on Sept. 6 coach Todd McLellan told CHED-AM 630 that he wasn't sure if Ference would remain captain or if he would opt for someone else to hold the role.

"It's virtually impossible for me as an individual to make a call on the leadership group and tactics that are in play here right now because I have not experienced the team as a whole," McLellan said then. "I haven't experienced a lot of the individuals, the way they carry themselves, the way they react in certain situations. Are they verbal leaders? Are they physical leaders? Are they both? How do they react in successful situations? How do they react to failure? How do they interact with their teammates? I can't answer any of those questions as a coach right now."

On Aug. 24, Ference told the Edmonton Journal that if he wasn't going to be the captain he had an idea of who it should be, but he wasn't going to say.

"It's not like I'm going to give you a list, but I definitely know who I'd pick," he said then. "It's not my anointment."

The Oilers are expected to have a young roster this season, headed by 18-year-old Connor McDavid, the first pick of the 2015 NHL Draft. Taylor Hall, 23, and Jordan Eberle, 25, are going into their sixth seasons. They were alternate captains last season.