The Philadelphia Flyers have had 16 different captains in their 41-year history. They have come in many shapes, sizes and toothless grins.

Some of the captains were hardy souls. No-frills, net-clearing players. Ed Van Impe comes to mind. Some of the captains were physical on the ice and vocal off it. They were unafraid to lash the team, when needed, in the media. Hello, Derian Hatcher. Some of the captains weren't dominating players, but stood up for their teammates with their physical play - and didn't shy away from a fight or four. Like Mel Bridgman.

All of which brings us to the current captain, center Mike Richards, who is quietly becoming one of the best leaders in the franchise's history. He's not Bobby Clarke. Yet. But from this perspective, he is on his way.

Clarke, of course, was the ultimate captain. He was a high-scoring player known for his grit and dirty work in the corners. His crafty stick work - opponents gave it another description - was legendary

Richards has Clarke's tenaciousness, playmaking ability and scoring talents. But there's a difference between the two centers. Clarke was an instigator who had teammates rushing to his aid. Richards rushes to the aid of his teammates. Take his knee-jerk response in Vancouver Tuesday, for instance.

Fifteen seconds into the game, left winger Simon Gagne was blind-sided by defenseman Kevin Bieksa and knocked to the ice. It was a cheap shot, but Bieksa, inexplicably, was not penalized. Richards decided to take things in his own hands. Literally. He went after Bieksa and the two slugged it out. Never mind that Richards lost the fight. He sent a message to his teammates: He will protect their marquee player, especially since Gagne missed most of last year with a concussion.

Source: Philly.com