"Travis' personality and leadership was entrenched in this community and in our locker room," said Kevin Colley, the Grizzlies' head coach and director of hockey operations. "He was always there encouraging his teammates to push themselves and always put everything on the line for the team."

Said Grizzlies' CEO Kevin Bruder: "Be it on billboards, radio and television interviews, countless school appearances and youth hockey practices, Travis was the face and voice of our organization since arriving here in 2005. We will miss him greatly and wish him the absolute best as he continues his life outside of hockey."

Rycroft lives in Denver and recently earned a degree in elementary education from Wayne State University.

"This was the toughest decision I have made in my life," said Rycroft. "I want to thank everyone for all the support of me and the Grizzlies. Salt Lake was a place I called home and realized that relationships are just as important as accomplishments."

Meanwhile, Colley announced that Ryan Kinasewich has been named the new captain. In addition, Matt Craig, James Sanford, Tim Verbeek and Jon Gleed have been named assistant captains as voted by their teammates.

Kinasewich enters his fourth season with Utah as the third-leading scorer in Grizzlies' history. He has 91 goals and 113 assists for 204 points in 148 games. He set a franchise record for points in a game when he had one goal and five assists against Phoenix last season. Utah acquired Kinasewich from Reading in October of 2005 in exchange for future considerations.

The Grizzlies open the 2008-09 season Saturday at Idaho. The home opening weekend is Oct. 24-24 against Alaska at the E-Center.