Ottawa Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson says a decision on whether or not he will retire is still a few weeks away.
Speaking to the team’s website on Tuesday in Las Vegas, Alfredsson admitted that he has not made up his mind — one way or the other.
“I believe in a few weeks, I’ll be there,” Alfredsson said. “I don’t know if subconsciously I just tried to push the decision or not, but as of right now, I can’t say I’m leaning one way or the other.”
The 39-year-old says he will meet with Senators general manager Bryan Murray and head coach Paul MacLean in the next 48 hours. All three are in Las Vegas for the NHL Awards ceremonies, which take place on Wednesday night.
“I don’t feel that it’s difficult in a way that it’s weighing on me every day. But at the same time, I want to make sure I make the right decision. I’m not there right now,” adds Alfredsson. “I’ll probably meet with Bryan and Paul while we’re here in Vegas. Talk to them a little bit more and just weigh all the options and make sure I do make the right decision for a lot reasons.
“For myself, for the team — I just know from previous experiences that if you don’t have the heart to put everything into it, you’re not going to perform at the level you want to and you’re not going to help the team.”
When the Senators were eliminated from the playoffs at the end of April by the New York Rangers, Alfredsson hinted that his decision would take a few weeks. After playing for Sweden at the World Championships, he reiterated that his decision was forthcoming. But he acknowledged on Tuesday that an illness has played a role in delaying his decision.”
“I had a setback a week and a half ago where I got sick. I started working out a bit and then I had a throat virus and it set me back for over a week,” Alfredsson explained. “I was in bed for five days pretty much, didn’t eat much, had a tough time swallowing. I’m just getting back into training again and probably going to take a little bit more time I guess before I know where I stand in my training and motivation – I guess more than anything – and go from there.”
Alfredsson is a nominee for the Bill Masterton Trophy. The 2012 NHL Awards take place on Wednesday night in Las Vegas.
