Ottawa Senators will retire Daniel Alfredsson’s number 11; Twitter approves

Former Ottawa Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson’s longtime number 11 jersey will soon hang from the rafters of the Canadian Tire Centre.

The announcement was made Tuesday at a news conference featuring top Senators brass, confirming rampant rumours.

Alfredsson had played for 18 seasons with the Senators until 2013, when he left for one season to play with the Detroit Redwings. He returned in 2014 to retire as a Senator.

His jersey will be raised to the rafters on December 29, fittingly before a game against the Redwings.

The only other Senator to receive the honour was Frank Finnigan (8), who played for the Senators from 1923 to 1934.

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https://twitter.com/livelikeagypsy/status/765635263334789120 _ ** (News release via Ottawa Senators) ** _ ** OTTAWA – ** Ottawa Senators (@Senators) owner Eugene Melnyk (@MelnykEugene) announced today that former Senators captain and current senior advisor of hockey operations Daniel Alfredsson will have his number 11 retired by the Senators on Thursday, Dec. 29, when the Senators host the Detroit Red Wings at Canadian Tire Centre.

“Daniel is an iconic figure in the history of our franchise. We are very excited to announce that the Senators Player Honouring Committee has unanimously decided that as we embark on the Ottawa Senators 25th season in the NHL, this would be the perfect time to have Daniel’s number 11 raised to the rafters of Canadian Tire Centre,” said Senators owner and chief executive officer Eugene Melnyk. “Daniel has consistently demonstrated class and excellence throughout his NHL career so it is only fitting his jersey number be retired to hang alongside the number 8 of legendary Frank Finnigan.”

Alfredsson, Ottawa’s sixth-round selection (133rd overall) in the 1994 NHL Draft began his storied 18-season career with the Senators in 1995-96, winning the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie. He went on to play 17 seasons for Ottawa and is the Senators’ all-time leader in goals (426), assists (682), points (1,108), power-play goals (131), shorthanded goals (25), game-winning goals (69), shots (3,320) and hat tricks (8). Alfredsson also is the franchise’s leader in playoff games (121), goals (51), assists (49) and points (100).

On Dec. 4, 2014, Alfredsson returned to Ottawa to formally retire from professional hockey as a Senator. In September of 2015 Alfredsson joined the Senators’ front office as senior advisor of hockey operations, a position he maintains today.

The Senators’ team captain for 13 seasons (1999-00 to 2012-13), Alfredsson was the first Senator to capture a major National Hockey League award, winning the Calder Trophy in 1995-96, the King Clancy award in 2012 and later the Mark Messier Leadership award in 2012-13.

Alfredsson was a six-time NHL all-star and represented his native Sweden in international play on 14 different occasions during his professional career, including winning two Olympics medals – the gold in 2006 and the silver in 2014.

Alfredsson and his wife, Bibbi, have four sons, Hugo, Louis, Fenix and William Erik. ** Alfredsson’s jersey second to be retired in franchise history ** The retirement of Alfredsson’s jersey is the second in the history of the Senators franchise, joining Frank Arthur Finnigan’s number 8.

The only member of the Ottawa Senators to have his number retired, Frank Finnigan’s hockey prowess was legendary. Nicknamed the Shawville Express for the Quebec town in which he was born on July 9, 1901, Finnigan was also a key figure in bringing the modern-day Senators back to Ottawa.

Finnigan recorded 115 goals, 203 points and 407 penalty minutes during his career. He was team captain from 1931-33 and holds the early day Senators record for games played with 553. The highlight of his 10-year stint in Ottawa was the 1927 Stanley Cup championship triumph over the Boston Bruins.

An integral figure in bringing back the modern-day Senators, Finnigan was asked to join the organizing committee as a thread to Ottawa’s rich hockey past. He was the last living member of the 1927 Cup-winning team until his death on Dec. 25, 1991. Before their inaugural home-opener against the Montreal Canadiens on Oct. 8, 1992, the Senators paid homage to Finnigan when a banner bearing his name and No. 8 was lifted to the rafters. The street in front of Canadian Tire Centre is also named Frank Finnigan Way in his honour. ** About the Ottawa Senators Player Honouring Committee ** Established in July 2015, the Ottawa Senators Player Honour Committee is a group of influential hockey executives, media, businesspersons and local hockey persons who have volunteered their time to discuss how and when to honour Senators legacy players. The first recommendation of the group was to retire Daniel Alfredsson ’s number 11. The 17-member group includes:

Eugene Melnyk, Sheldon Plener, Cyril Leeder, Bryan Murray; Ken Villazor; Bruce Garrioch, Roy MacGregor, Jim McAuley, Sylvain St-Laurent, Dean Brown, Terry Marcotte, Cliff Hammell, Ian Sherman, Murray Costello, Jim Durrell, Geoff Moore and Richard Gray.

This committee will continue to work together for future recommendations on honouring players in the years to come.

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