Eager leader: Ciampini pledges to adopt any role for Sheffield Steelers

When coach Aaron Fox gets announces who his captain and his alternates will be, he will find the Canadian ready to bear his share of responsibility.

A winning team needs strong characters on the ice and on the bench, and while Robert Dowd is most fans’ pick for the main role, as discussed in The Star last week, Ciampini is ready to do whatever is required of him

The 32-year-old said: “Last year Foxy came to me and said he was looking at bringing in people as captains, I told him my role wouldn’t change, the letter is something more for show, for refs, quite honestly.

“I am going to lead by example do my thing whatever I have on my jersey in terms of a letter.”

Ciampini said: “Obviously the captaincy is up for grabs with Jono (Phillips) being gone but I feel like there is only a handful of guys that can step into that role anyways and I think we can all take a pretty good stab at who that might be!

“In terms of the supporting cast, I think there will be a number of us who can kind of take the bull by the horns.

“I am going to be the same person, the same player and I will provide the same critiue of our systems and our lines and what is expected of certain guys and myself. That won’t change.

“If I did get the honour to wear a letter and represent the team in that direction it would definitely be a cool feat for myself. But it was not going to change who I’ll be.”

Ciampini said he enjoyed being a captain in junior hockey with St. Michael’s Buzzers in the Ontario Junior Hockey League.

“The organisation was such a historical franchise, the tradition and culture are to be celebrated, and to be captain for two years for me was a huge honour and I still kind of hold that dear to my heart.

“Some great players came through that organisation.”

He said his style as a captain had not been hugely vocal.

“I am not the ‘Ra Ra’ guy or a yell-and-scream guy, I am a play-by-example guy.”

Ciampini also gave an insight into how the financial package was not the first thing on his mind when he committed to a second season at Sheffield.

“It wasn’t about money; it was more comfortability and I told Aaron money is not the be-all and end-all.

“I wanted to understand what he was looking to do, his direction and vision.

“The money was just about a fair market value, among what else was going on with others around the league.

“Money was the last piece to come together before everything else. I felt Foxy wasn’t going to go behind my back and slash me at the knees, I thought he was pretty fair and reasonable about the whole thing.”

Steelers start their pre-season on Saturday, September 9 against Nottingham Panthers (7pm.)

• *Cardiff Devils showed they will again be a force to be reckoned with two pre-season victories over Belfast Giants last weekend.