A published report Thursday says Brian Gionta will be named the 28th team captain of the Montreal Canadiens.
La Presse's Francois Gagnon, who also serves as an analyst for CTV Montreal's post-game coverage of the Habs, writes that Gionta's nomination will be announced over the course of training camp.
Canadiens camp unofficially gets underway Thursday morning as the team holds its annual fundraising golf tournament at Laval-sur-le-Lac.
Gionta met with reporters at the golf tournament and said he would be honoured to be captain, but that nothing has been finalized yet.
Gionta has always been considered a strong candidate to replace Saku Koivu, who served as Canadiens captain from 1999-2009, matching Jean Beliveau for the longest tenure in club history.
The 31-year-old Rochester, New York native would become the second American captain of the Canadiens, following Chris Chelios who served as team co-captain in 1989-90 before being traded to the Chicago Blackhawks for Denis Savard.
If indeed Gionta is named captain over the coming days, he will have gotten the nod over the team's longest-tenured player, defenceman Andrei Markov.
Many believed Markov was not interested in assuming the media responsibilities that come with the captaincy, but he said last season that he would not refuse a request to wear the "C" for the Canadiens.
Markov, currently recovering from knee surgery, is entering the final year of his contract and could hit the unrestricted free agent market on July 1, a factor that may play into the team's decision. Gionta is in the second year of a five-year contract that pays him $5 million per season.
While Koivu was elected captain by his teammates, Canadiens general manager Pierre Gauthier and head coach Jacques Martin have indicated they will select the next captain of the team.
