Foligno latest Wolves alumni to be named NHL captain

Nick Foligno has had quite the year when it comes to hockey. The Sudbury Wolves alumni had a career year last season, racking up 73 points, and was named team captain at the NHL All Star game when it was hosted by the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena.

This year, Foligno had an even bigger honour bestowed upon him, having the letter “C” stitched onto his Columbus Blue Jackets jersey as he was named the team's first captain since the departure of Rick Nash in 2012.

The 27-year-old lends a lot of credit to his time with the Sudbury Wolves for where he is today and for instilling the right values in him.

“It's a huge honour (to be named captain) it makes you feel good about the values you have as a person and a player, and I learned a lot of those while playing for the Sudbury Wolves,” said Foligno.

Foligno had the "C" on his jersey last year during the All Star game, but was not about to get presumptuous and never had any inkling that it might be a sign that he was next in line to captain a team that had been without one for three seasons.

“It's not really a thought that comes into your head until management comes to speak to you,” said Foligno. “I was just enjoying the moment at the All Star game and everything that came with it and I was really honoured when I got the call to be the captain of this team and it's a job I take very seriously and I want to do a great job.”

Following in the footsteps of his father Mike, Nick is now a member of a small group of Wolves graduates to be named captain of an NHL franchise. Others include Michael Peca and Dale Hunter. Foligno says that this is the biggest accomplishment of his hockey career to date.

“This is probably number one for sure right now until we win a Stanley Cup,” he said. “That's something that you're very proud of as a player, to have somebody want to use you as a role model for their team and what their team characterizes is a huge accomplishment.”

Though Nick has not put on a Wolves sweater since 2007, he still keeps in contact with members of the organization and he was congratulated by the Wolves brass.

“Blaine Smith contacted me to congratulate me and so did Ken MacKenzie,” said Foligno. “I still keep in touch with those guys and I really appreciated the texts and calls for sure.”

The Blue Jackets are off to a tough start to the 2015-16 NHL campaign, much like the Sudbury Wolves who currently reside near the bottom of the OHL's Eastern Conference.

Foligno sent some words of encouragement to his former club to keep their heads up.

“Enjoy the moment and try to characterize what it means to be a Sudbury Wolf,” said Foligno. “Be proud of the jersey that you're wearing and the people there deserve an honest game every night, they're hard working people and if you can give them an honest game, no matter what the score is, they're going to cheer for you.”