The Sarnia Sting have selected a new team captain for the stretch run to the playoffs.
The OHL hockey club announced Saturday that it's putting the "C" on Sam Studnicka's jersey.
Studnicka will join the current leadership group of assistant captains, Jakob Chychrun, Josh Jacobs, Brandon Lindberg, Pavel Zacha and Alex Black.
The overage centreman joined the Sting earlier this month after spending three seasons with the Ottawa 67’s. Before being traded, Studnicka was an assistant captain with the 67’s and played a big role in their leadership core.
The Windsor-native has played a team-high 238 career OHL games, split between the Windsor Spitfires, the Ottawa 67’s, and now the Sarnia Sting. So far this season, Studnicka has registered a career-high 18 goals and is 6th overall in the league with a 60.3% face-off percentage.
Head Coach Derian Hatcher says Studnicka has been a great addition to the locker room since coming over at the trade deadline. "He shows up to the rink with the right attitude, and you know what you’re going to get out of him every night," says Hatcher. "He will be a big piece of the puzzle for us down the stretch.”
Studnicka's first game as captain is Saturday night when the Sting visit the Flint Firebirds.
He takes over the role vacated by Daniel Nikandrov who was traded to the Peterborough Petes in November.