Daniel Alfredsson

For the director, see Daniel Alfredson.

Daniel Alfredsson
Daniel Alfredsson carries the puck up the ice during a 2006 warmup.
Born	11 December 1972 (1972-12-11) (age 38) Gothenburg, Sweden
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight	205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb)
Position	Right wing
Shoots	Right
NHL team Former teams	Ottawa Senators Frölunda HC (SEL)
National team	Sweden
NHL Draft	133rd overall, 1994 Ottawa Senators
Playing career	1992–present

Daniel Alfredsson (born 11 December 1972) is a Swedish professional ice hockey player. He is the captain of the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is considered a leader by example^[1] and has been compared to former Detroit Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman in his value to the Senators.^[1] A right winger with the Senators, Alfredsson usually plays on the first line, which was formerly nicknamed the 'CASH'^[2] or 'Pizza'^[3] line with centre Jason Spezza and left winger Dany Heatley, before Heatley's trade to the San Jose Sharks. He has traditionally been the fourth forward on the ice in the role of pointman on Ottawa's powerplay. He is one of the league's top two-way players, and he holds the Senators' franchise records for goals (380), assists (622), and points (1002) with 1011 games played. He has played for Sweden internationally thirteen times, including the 2006 gold medal winning Olympic squad. He was the 75th player to reach 1,000 career points in the NHL, scoring three goals in a win over the Buffalo Sabres on 22 October 2010.

Playing career

Drafted 133rd overall in the sixth round in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft, Alfredsson was a serendipitous pick by the Senators. He had been overlooked by many NHL scouts, but one man in Ottawa's front office, John Ferguson, saw the potential and pushed management for his selection.^[4] Though largely unheralded entering his first NHL training camp, he would go on to win the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year in his first NHL season in 1995–96 and was the Senators' representative at the NHL All-Star Game. In 1996–97, he improved on his rookie totals and played in the All-Star Game again. He finished second in team scoring, contributing to the Senators' first modern playoff qualification.

Alfredsson missed the beginning of the 1997–98 season due to a contract dispute. He signed a new deal on 12 October 1997, worth $14 million over four years. After missing the first five games of the season, he was greeted by a standing ovation in his first game back in Ottawa.^[5] Alfredsson would later be named the Senators' representative at the All-Star Game for the third consecutive season. During that season, Alfredsson would play in only 55 games, due to the earlier contract dispute and a late season ankle injury. The Senators qualified for the playoffs again and defeated the New Jersey Devils, but lost to the surging Washington Capitals in the second round. Alfredsson would score seven goals in 11 playoff games in 1998.

In 1998–99, Alfredsson missed 24 games due to an injury, and was limited to only 11 goals.^[6] The club once again qualified for the playoffs, and Alfredsson hoped to have a good postseason,^[6] but was limited to one goal and three points in a sweep at the hands of the Buffalo Sabres. The next season, he was named captain of the Senators after Alexei Yashin was stripped of the captaincy for refusing to honor his contract. After two somewhat disappointing seasons, Alfredsson's scoring totals improved, with 21 goals and 59 points in 57 games. In the playoffs, the Senators met the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. The Senators would lose the inaugural "Battle of Ontario", although Alfredsson contributed three goals in the six-game series.

In 2000–01, Yashin returned to the Ottawa lineup but the team captaincy remained with Alfredsson, who would score 24 goals and 70 points in 68 games. The Senators again met the Maple Leafs in the first round of the playoffs, and Alfredsson was limited to one goal in a four-game series sweep by Toronto. In 2001–02, Alfredsson set a personal best with 37 goals and 71 points in 78 games. In the playoffs, the Senators once again met the now arch-rival Maple Leafs in the second round, where they lost in seven games. Alfredsson led the team in playoff scoring with seven goals and 13 points in 12 games.

Alfredsson signed a two-year contract prior to the 2002–03 season. He increased his scoring totals, finishing with 27 goals and 78 points. The club won the President's Trophy that season, despite the organization filing for bankruptcy protection, and qualified for the Eastern Conference Finals before losing to the eventual Stanley Cup champion New Jersey Devils. Alfredsson scored four goals and eight points in 18 games.

In 2003–04, Alfredsson finished the season with 32 goals and 80 points in 78 games. The club lost its first-round playoff to Toronto, and Alfredsson was limited to one goal and three points in the seven-game series. Mid-season, Alfredsson signed a five year contract extension with the Ottawa Senators.

Like many NHL players, Alfredsson played for a European team during the 2004–05 NHL lockout. He returned to Sweden to play for Frölunda HC, the team he had played for prior to beginning his NHL career. He played on an all-NHL line with P. J. Axelsson and Samuel Påhlsson, helping the club win the Swedish Championship. Alfredsson was a major contributor during the playoffs, scoring 12 goals and 18 points in 14 games.

On 5 October 2005, opening night for the 2005–06 NHL season, the Senators played the Maple Leafs, with the newly acquired Dany Heatley playing on the top line with Jason Spezza and Brandon Bochenski. The Senators were down by a goal with five minutes remaining in the third period, when Alfredsson, replacing Bochenski on the top line, scored the tying goal. This line combination would remain intact, and became known as the 'CASH line'.^[7] Later in the same game, Heatley and Alfredsson scored the first goals in a regular season NHL shootout when they scored against Leafs goalie Ed Belfour for a 3–2 victory. With Alfredsson scoring in the shootout, he became the first captain in the NHL history to do so. Alfredsson and Heatley's sticks were subsequently sent to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Alfredsson capped off the 2005–06 regular season with a career high 103 points (43 goals and 60 assists) tied for first on the Senators along with Heatley. Perhaps the best game of his NHL career took place on 3 November 2005 against the longtime rival Buffalo Sabres, in which he scored a then career-high four goals and six points.

After a disappointing 2006 playoffs and poor play to start the season, Alfredsson became the subject of trade rumors from the beginning of the 2006–07 season. He improved his game, attributing the reversal in part to a change in skates, and had a six-game scoring streak soon after. On Saturday, 23 December 2006, against the Philadelphia Flyers, he notched his 600th career point, scoring two goals and adding an assist.

In the 2007 playoffs, Alfredsson was the Senators' leading scorer with 14 goals and 22 points in 20 games. His leadership and strong play helped the Senators as they advanced past the Pittsburgh Penguins, the New Jersey Devils, and the Buffalo Sabres advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in modern franchise history. He became the first European-born-and-raised captain to lead his team to the finals. When presented with the Prince of Wales Trophy, he posed while touching the trophy,^[8] which many hockey players consider a form of bad luck.

Alfredsson was arguably Ottawa's best player in the Stanley Cup Finals, which the Senators ultimately lost to the Anaheim Ducks in a five game series. In a controversial incident in game four, an Alfredsson slap shot hit Ducks captain Scott Niedermayer at the end of the second period, leading to unfounded speculation that Alfredsson intended to injure Niedermayer. Alfredsson dismissed the notion, saying that he had glanced up at the clock to see if he had time to move in for a better shot, and then quickly fired in the heat of an extremely important game.

Along with the rest of the Senators, Alfredsson's 2007–08 season was marked by highs and lows. On 24 January 2008, he scored three goals and four assists in an 8–4 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning., setting the Senators' record for most points in one game. It vaulted him into the NHL scoring lead at the All-Star break. He was named NHL 'Player of the Week' and its 'First Star'. Alfredsson and his linemates, Heatley and Spezza, were named to the Eastern Conference All-Star game roster, although Heatley would not play due to injury. Injuries reduced Alfredsson's playing time and effectiveness in the latter half of the season. First, Alfredsson suffered a hip pointer injury, and on 3 April 2008, Mark Bell of the Maple Leafs hit him with a shoulder that left Alfredsson on the ice, unable to get up for several minutes.^[9] He missed the final game of the regular season and the beginning of the playoffs. He had played in every modern Senators playoff game up to that point. On 14 April 2008, with the Senators trailing 2–0 in their playoff series to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Alfredsson made his return in game three of the series, four weeks earlier than initially expected. He was welcomed with a lengthy standing ovation at Scotiabank Place. However, the Senators gave up four unanswered goals (three in the third period) to lose the game 4–1. The Senators lost game four 3–1. Afterwards, in an interview on CBC, he admitted he had been playing with a ruptured medial collateral ligament.

In October 2008, Alfredsson underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee to remove a bone chip and returned less than a week later. On 30 October 2008, Alfredsson agreed to a four-year contract extension with Ottawa worth $21.6 million. The contract, intended to allow Alfredsson to finish his playing career with the Senators, included a no-movement clause.^[10]

The 2008–09 season was a disappointing one for both Alfredsson and the Senators. The team failed the to make the playoffs, and Alfredsson registered only 24 goals and 74 points in 79 games. On 8 July 2009, Alfredsson became the longest serving active captain in the NHL, as former Montreal Canadiens captain Saku Koivu signed with the Anaheim Ducks and former Colorado Avalanche captain Joe Sakic announced his retirement.

The 2009–10 season saw his point total dip again, as he scored only 20 goals and had 71 points in 70 games. On 6 April, Alfredsson reached an important milestone, playing in his 1000th regular season game. Even though the Senators lost to Pittsburgh in the first round, Alfredsson still scored 2 goals and added 6 assists to lead the team in scoring (tied with Matt Cullen). He later admitted he had been bothered by a sports hernia since February, which could explain his reduced effectiveness in the last weeks of the season and the playoffs.

During the 2010–11 season, Alfredsson recorded his 1,000th career NHL point in a victory over the Buffalo Sabres on 22 October 2010.

At season's end, Alfredsson underwent back surgery and was released from hospital the same day. At a 14 June 2011 news conference introducing new Senators' head coach Paul MacLean, Alfredsson stated that the surgery went well and that he was moving around fine.^[11]

Alfredsson began the 2011-12 season healthy, but was diagnosed with a concussion for the first time in his career after receiving a blow to the head from New York Rangers forward Wojtek Wolski on 29 October 2011.^[12] He returned on 11 November after missing five games, in a game against the Buffalo Sabres.^[13]

International play

Olympic medal record
Men's ice hockey
World Championships
Silver	2004 Prague/Ostrava	Ice hockey
Bronze	2001 Cologne/Hanover	Ice hockey
Bronze	1999 Oslo/Hamar	Ice hockey
Silver	1995 Stockholm	Ice hockey
Olympic Games
Gold	2006 Turin	Ice hockey

Participated in 12 Sweden international teams:

• 1995 World Championships (silver medal)
• 1996 World Championships
• 1996 World Cup of Hockey
• 1998 Winter Olympics
• 1999 World Championships (bronze medal)
• 2001 World Championships (bronze medal)
• 2002 Winter Olympics
• 2004 World Championships (silver medal)
• 2004 World Cup of Hockey
• 2005 World Championships
• 2006 Winter Olympics (alternate captain, gold medal)
• 2010 Winter Olympics (alternate captain)

In the 2006 tournament, he set highs in goals (5), assists (5) and points (10) and played on the second line with Mats Sundin and Henrik Zetterberg. After an injury to Peter Forsberg, Alfredsson took Forsberg's spot as the alternate captain, along with Captain Sundin and defenseman Nicklas Lidström.

Personal life

Alfredsson was married to longtime girlfriend Birgitta Alfredsson (née Backman) on 31 July 2004. They are the parents of four sons, Hugo, Loui, Fenix and William Erik.^[14] The family resides in Ottawa and Särö, Sweden. Alfredsson's parents are Hasse and Margareta Alfredsson.

His younger brother Henrik Alfredsson played with the Ottawa 67's junior team as a 19-year old during their 1999 Memorial Cup-winning season. Henrik decided to stay in Ottawa after his junior hockey career with the 67's was complete, and now works for the Ottawa Police Service.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1992–93	Frölunda HC Gothenburg	SEL		21	1	5	6	8		—	—	—	—	—
1993–94	Frölunda HC Gothenburg	SEL		39	20	10	30	18		4	1	1	2	8
1994–95	Frölunda HC Gothenburg	SEL		22	7	11	18	22		—	—	—	—	—
1995–96	Ottawa Senators	NHL		82	26	35	61	28		—	—	—	—	—
1996–97	Ottawa Senators	NHL		76	24	47	71	30		7	5	2	7	6
1997–98	Ottawa Senators	NHL		55	17	28	45	18		11	7	2	9	20
1998–99	Ottawa Senators	NHL		58	11	22	33	14		4	1	2	3	4
1999–00	Ottawa Senators	NHL		57	21	38	59	28		6	3	1	4	2
2000–01	Ottawa Senators	NHL		68	24	46	70	30		4	1	0	1	2
2001–02	Ottawa Senators	NHL		78	37	34	71	45		12	7	6	13	4
2002–03	Ottawa Senators	NHL		78	27	51	78	42		18	4	4	8	12
2003–04	Ottawa Senators	NHL		77	32	48	80	24		7	1	2	3	2
2004–05	Frölunda HC Gothenburg	SEL		15	8	9	17	10		14	12	6	18	8
2005–06	Ottawa Senators	NHL		77	43	60	103	50		10	2	8	10	4
2006–07	Ottawa Senators	NHL		77	29	58	87	42		20	14	8	22	10
2007–08	Ottawa Senators	NHL		70	40	49	89	34		2	0	0	0	0
2008–09	Ottawa Senators	NHL		79	24	50	74	24		—	—	—	—	—
2009–10	Ottawa Senators	NHL		70	20	51	71	22		6	2	6	8	2
2010–11	Ottawa Senators	NHL		54	14	17	31	18		—	—	—	—	—
SEL totals				97	36	35	71	58		18	13	7	20	16
NHL totals				1056	389	634	1023	449		107	45	43	88	68

International

		Tournament
Event		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1995 World Championships		8	3	1	4	4
1996 World Cup of Hockey		4	0	0	0	2
1996 World Championships		6	1	2	3	4
1998 Olympics		4	2	3	5	2
1999 World Championships		10	4	5	9	8
2001 World Championships		9	3	5	8	8
2002 Olympics		4	1	4	5	2
2004 World Cup of Hockey		4	0	6	6	2
2004 World Championships		8	4	2	6	8
2005 World Championships		9	3	6	9	6
2006 Olympics		8	5	5	10	2
2010 Olympics		4	3	0	3	0
Olympic totals		20	11	12	23	6
World Championship totals		54	18	22	40	40

Awards

• 1996 – NHL All-Rookie Team
• 1996 – Calder Memorial Trophy
• 1996 – Played in NHL All-Star Game
• 1997 – Played in NHL All-Star Game
• 1998 – Played in NHL All-Star Game
• 2004 – Played in NHL All-Star Game
• 2004–05 – Elitserien Championship
• 2005–06 – Second Team All-Star [1]
• 2006 – Gold medal at the Winter Olympics
• 2008 – Starter to NHL All-Star Game, Guy Carbonneau Award for 'Top Penalty-Killer'^[15]

Records and achievements

Milestones

• Is the Senators all-time leader in games played, goals, assists and points.
• Holds the Senators record for highest +/- rating in a season, set in 2006–07 with +42.
• Holds the Senators record for most points in a regular season game, set in 2007–08 with 3 goals and 4 assists for 7 points.
• Holds the following Senators playoff records: most games played (he has played in 101 of the 103 playoff games of the modern Senators), goals, assists and points.
• Set the Senators record for most goals in a playoff run with 14 in the 2006–07 playoffs. He also led the league in goals during the 2006–07 playoffs and tied line mates Jason Spezza and Dany Heatley with 22 points to lead the league in playoff scoring.
• 10 November 2007 - scored the 300th goal of his career.
• 24 January 2008 - scored the 500th assist of his career. Alfredsson also set a team record for the most points in a regular season game with 7 (3 goals, 4 assists).
• Played in his 1000th NHL game (all with the Ottawa Senators) on 6 April 2010 against the Florida Panthers
• Recorded 1000 points with a hat-trick over the Buffalo Sabres on 22 October 2010.

Awards

• Won the first major award in modern Senators history when he was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy in 1995–96.

Nominations

• Finished 3rd in Selke Trophy voting as the best defensive forward in 2005–06.
• Finished 4th in Lady Byng Memorial Trophy voting as the NHL's most gentlemanly player in 2005–06.
• Finished 2nd in Lady Byng Memorial Trophy voting in 2003–04.

Other

• 10 April 2010 is officially "Daniel Alfredsson Day" in Ottawa, declared in honour of his 1,000th NHL game.^[16]

• Is the first European-born and trained captain to lead his team to the Stanley Cup Finals. Four other European-born captains (Johnny Gottselig and Chuck Gardiner of the Chicago Blackhawks, Nicklas Lidström of the Detroit Red Wings as well as Zdeno Chara of the Boston Bruins) have led their teams to the finals.
• Improved his point totals for six consecutive seasons from 1998–99 to 2005–06 inclusive, a franchise record.
• Appears on the cover of the Swedish version of the 'NHL 09' video game.^[17]
• Is the current longest serving active captain in the NHL. (Since the 1999–2000 season).

See also

• List of Swedes in sports
• List of NHL players with 1000 games played
• List of NHL players with 1000 points

Notes and references

1. ^ ^{a b} Scanlan, Wayne (26 January 2008), "Captains Courageous; When it comes to leading by example, few have been better at it than Daniel Alfredsson and Steve Yzerman", The Ottawa Citizen: C1 
2. ^ Lefebvre, Jean (5 December 2005), "What's my line?: Naming Sens trio as hard as stopping 'em", Calgary Herald: F5 
3. ^ Garrioch, Bruce (2 October 2007), "Pizza Line Ordered Up", Ottawa Sun 
4. ^ ESPN.com
5. ^ Casey, Tom (18 May 1998), "Diary of a season: It had a bit of everything, from trades, to holdouts, to injuries and playoff races", The Ottawa Citizen: D4 
6. ^ ^{a b} MacGregor, Roy (22 April 1999), "Alfredsson enjoys fresh start in stale result; The clean start: Ottawa Senator Daniel Alfredsson hopes the stains of a disappointing season can be washed away in the playoff rinse", National Post: B14 
7. ^ Citizen staff (17 November 2005), "The Cash Line easily wins the vote", Ottawa Citizen: C1 
8. ^ http://brightbill.covblogs.com/archives/whythesenswilllose.jpg
9. ^ http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=233499
10. ^ "Alfredsson and Senators agree to four-year deal". TSN.ca. 30 October 2008. http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/teams/story/?id=254198&hubname=nhl-senators&lid=sublink01&lpos=headlines_nhl-senators. Retrieved 30 October 2008. 
11. ^ http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Ottawa/2011/06/14/18280776.html
12. ^ "Alfie is ready to play". sportsnet.ca. 10 November 2011. http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2011/11/10/alfredsson_returns/. Retrieved 13 November 2011. 
13. ^ "ENROTH STANDS TALL AGAIN, SABRES DOMINATE SENATORS". tsn.ca. 12 November 2011. http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=380257. Retrieved 13 November 2011. 
14. ^ "Newest Alfredsson has a name". Ottawa Citizen. 23 May 2011. http://www.ottawacitizen.com/sports/Newest+Alfredsson+name/4828621/story.html. Retrieved 18 June 2011. 
15. ^ The Hockey News: 29, 29 April 2008 
16. ^ TSN.ca Staff (8 April 2010). "REPORT: MAYOR TO PROCLAIM SATURDAY 'ALFREDSSON DAY' IN OTTAWA". TSN.ca. http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=317181. Retrieved 10 April 2010. 
17. ^ The Canadian Press (9 June 2008). "FLAMES' PHANEUF TO GRACE THE COVER OF 'NHL 09'". TSN.ca. http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=240173&lid=sublink09&lpos=headlines_nhl. Retrieved 10 June 2008. 

External links

• Daniel Alfredsson's career stats at The Internet Hockey Database
• Ottawa Senators.com - Career Notes
• Q & A with Alfredsson (2000)

Preceded by Peter Forsberg	Winner of the Calder Trophy 1996	Succeeded by Bryan Berard
Preceded by Alexei Yashin	Ottawa Senators captain 1999–present	Incumbent

Persondata
Name	Alfredsson, Daniel
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	11 December 1972
Place of birth	Gothenburg, Sweden
Date of death
Place of death