BY DEREK CARSON – FAN FUEL BLOGGER
Our prayers have been answered and The Alfie is returning for his 18th season with the Ottawa Senators! Daniel Alfredsson is 18 years old now so he can vote and drink in Quebec and Alberta!
I always knew he would come back. I could see the fire in his eyes during the regular season and in the playoffs. While he doesn’t play keep-away from the rest of the league anymore, Alfie is still the most important player on the team.
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Alfie only had 10 goals and 16 assists in 48 games last year, but he led the team in the playoffs with 10 points in 10 games, including a shorthanded goal with only 28 seconds left in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Pittsburgh Penguins, which tied the game and sent it to overtime (I don’t think I’ve ever screamed so loud than when he did that). The Sens won that game in double-overtime thanks to a goal from Colin Greening.
I can’t overstate how important Daniel Alfredsson is to the Ottawa Senators and to the city of Ottawa. He is not just the face of the franchise, he is the franchise, and the emotions of the city go as the team’s performance goes.
He’s the best captain anyone could have asked for. What he brings on the ice is a fierce competitive spirit that can’t be discouraged and the knowledge of a seasoned veteran that lets him be where he is needed to be at all times.
I can’t imagine a Sens team without Alfie. I know that soon the day will come when Alfie hangs up his skates, but it is not this day.
To paraphrase Aragorn from the Lord of the Rings: A day may come when we break the bonds of fellowship between the Sens and The Alfie, a day of sorrow for all Sens-kind, but it is not this day! This day we fight!
Go Sens!