Teemu Selanne has been named captain of Team Finland ahead of the men’s Olympic hockey tournament.
Mikko Koivu was originally given the ‘C’ but the Minnesota Wild star withdrew from Olympic competition last week as he’s still recovering from surgery to repair a broken ankle he suffered in early January.
The captaincy change was announced Monday. Philadelphia Flyers defenceman Kimmo Timonen and former Toronto Maple Leafs winger Leo Komarov will serve as alternate captains.
Selanne, who has 20 points in 47 games with the Anaheim Ducks this season, will be competing in his sixth Olympic Games; he won a bronze medal in 1998, silver in 2006 and another bronze in 2010. He has 37 points in his Olympic career, which is the most all-time.
Finland’s coach Erkka Westerlund told reporters in Sochi Monday that Selanne will play on the top line with Florida Panthers rookie Aleksander Barkov and Wild standout Mikael Granlund.
Barkov and Granlund have a combined age of 39, which is four years younger than Selanne. At 43, the Finnish Flash is the oldest player currently in the NHL and in the tournament.
Finland plays its first game Thursday against Austria.
