No Kieran Read, Rieko Ioane back for All Blacks
The decision to name him, while entirely deserved, still came as something of a surprise as Barrett has acted as vice-captain in the two tests on this tour and Cane, by virtue of having captained the team twice before, were viewed as the strongest candidates to take over from Read this week.
Barrett also led the team at Twickenham against the Barbarians, but with plenty already on his plate trying to drive the team as the chief playmaker, the decision was taken that he'd be better served left to focus exclusively on his job at No 10.
When All Blacks coach Steve Hansen named Cane as captain against Namibia in 2015, he made it clear that the openside flanker was being groomed as a potential long term successor to Read.
Cane also led the side last November against Italy and captained the Chiefs this year. Hansen said the decision on who should captain the team against Wales came down to a straight choice between the two Sams and with Whitelock winning out, largely because there is a higher chance of him playing the full 80 minutes.
"Beaudy while he enjoyed being skipper, I think he would prefer just to focus on being the No 10 and the driver," said Hansen.
Warren Gatland reveals why Wales no longer fear the All Blacks
"He is the driver so you don't want to overload him. He enjoyed the experience [of captaincy].
"[Whitelock] He was successful. They won the title and he has been a natural leader in our group for some time. It was going to be either him or Sam Cane and Whitelock bar injury is probably going to play 80 minutes. That was the deciding factor in the end."
Whitelock has been one of the most influential players in New Zealand this year. His form for the Crusaders was outstanding from the first few rounds and he grew into the captaincy, leading mostly by example but with a few sage words every now and again to keep his side on track.
He's renowned within the squad for being concise and clear when he speaks and with 95 tests behind him, he's earned global respect as a player.
Whitelock has sometimes not won the recognition he deserves as his usual locking partner, Brodie Retallick, tends to win the headlines with his open field ball running.
But Whitelock has shown a phenomenal capacity to get through the heaviest of workloads and contribute. His lineout contribution has been excellent all year, he rarely drops a kick off, he scoots around to make nearly the same volume of tackles of the loose forwards and at 122kg, he makes his presence felt at the breakdowns.
"He will fit in seamlessly," said hooker and Crusaders teammate, Codie Taylor. "He likes to take control and be real direct with information he shares on the field. He focuses on task by task when we are out there.
"That seems to be the thing with those Whitelocks they love being captains and they are really good at. I know it was one of his goals to captain the All Blacks so I know he will be really pumped on Saturday."
