Clayton Keller: NHL.com seems to (accidentally) reveal he'll be Coyotes captain

The Arizona Coyotes have been without a captain for two years now. After trading Oliver Ekman-Larsson to the Canucks in July 2021, the club didn’t name a successor, and two years later, there still isn’t one.

That said, if there’s one player who deserves to be there, it’s undoubtedly Clayton Keller. Despite the bizarre saga during which his father seemed to assert that the forward would never play in Arizona again(before defending himself by saying he’d been hacked), he’s clearly the face of the franchise right now.

He even maintains that other players will do the same → https://t.co/sqsjKaFcii

– DansLesCoulisses (@DLCoulisses) May 17, 2023

While the formation around him is constantly changing, Keller is a mainstay in the desert and is known to be very involved in the community, having been part of the group that championed the arena project in Tempe (which was ultimately rejected by the people).

Clearly, he seems to like Arizona, despite everything that’s going on.

However, in a text published by Jon Lane yesterday, there seems to have been an accidental announcement, while in a piece where the journalist talks about André Tourigny, he seems to mention that Keller is the team captain.

The text, which you can consult HERE, has since been modified: the word “attacker” is used instead of “captain”.

So … https://t.co/cGnvTIr3DQ just leaked Arizona’s new captain…@theazsportsguy pic.twitter.com/Rkkd6sdlzn

– Jacob Larivière (@Jake_Larivire) July 23, 2023

It could very well be a simple mistake, but if so, it’s a bit surprising that it was corrected so quickly when we find another error in the same paragraph: Matias Maccelli signed a three-year contract, not a two-year one.

And at the time of writing, the error concerning Maccelli’s contract is still present in the text.

If Keller is indeed named captain, he clearly won’t have stolen his job. Now, if the club wanted to plan a big announcement, the journalist may have let the cat out of the bag a little, and clearly, that can’t be good news for the Arizona team.

In short, we’ll have to wait and see, but one of the eight captain positions still vacant could very well be filled by Clayton Keller in Arizona. This would be a fine distinction for one of the few players who hasn’t abandoned ship in Arizona, and who is one of the most underrated forwards on the circuit.

In gusts

– Great read.

Introducing a new #GoHabsGo series: What I Got Wrong About The Montreal Canadiens.

The first article was my biggest blunder, underestimating what Arber Xhekaj could bring to the table for the Habs.

Here’s why and how Xhekaj proved mewrong⬇️https://t.co/i3utGnG7dC

– Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) July 24, 2023

– I still think it will be Pittsburgh.

All bets are off. 🧐 pic.twitter.com/vQEwSnQDsN

– TVA Sports (@TVASports) July 24, 2023

– Lionel Messi clearly has something to do with it.

#MLSSeasonPass subscriptions rise from 700,000 to 1M from June to July.
👇👇👇 https://t.co/POk036OXuz

– Jeremy Filosa 🎙 (@JeremyFilosa) July 24, 2023

– Interesting.

In return, Cincinnati is looking for a young starting pitcher still under team control for several years. https://t.co/24qfZwU4XL

– Passion MLB (@passion_mlb) July 24, 2023

– Well deserved.

After his title in Granby, Alexis Galarneau receives a pass to the main draw at the National Bank Open. Vasek Pospisil and Gabriel Diallo also get one.

– Antoine Deshaies (@antoinedeshaies) July 24, 2023