Oilers name Andrew Ference team captain

Andrew Ference is the new captain of the Edmonton Oilers, the club announced Sunday. 

Ference joined the Oilers as a free agent in July to help fill a role in the team's top four defencemen. He becomes the 14th captain in club history.

The Edmonton native replaces Shawn Horcoff, who was traded to the Dallas Stars this summer.

Ference, 34, is entering his 14th NHL season. He has spent time with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Calgary Flames and Boston Bruins.

In his past two seasons with the Bruins, Ference served as the alternate captain. He posted four goals and 13 points in the lockout-shortened 48-game campaign. He played on the team's second defence pairing during both a Stanley Cup run in 2011 and the return to the Final in 2013.

Drafted in the eighth round of the 1997 NHL draft, the five-foot-11, 189-pound blue-liner has 37 goals, 156 assists and 645 penalty minutes in 760 career games.