Alfredsson awaits word on Hall of Fame shot
Former Senators captain was known for his consistency
So is Daniel Alfredsson a first ballot hall-of-famer? We’re about to find out. The Hockey Hall of Fame will announce its inductees Monday at 3 p.m. on TSN. This will be the first year the Ottawa Senators’ former captain is eligible to be voted in by the committee that will meet in Toronto in the morning before making the announcement.
While former Winnipeg Jets winger Teemu Selanne, who finished his career with the Anaheim Ducks, is expected to be an automatic for induction the first time he’s eligible, there is a debate whether Alfredsson will be among the group selected. Seventy-five per cent of the 18-member committee has to approve entry into the hall.
After finishing his career with the Detroit Red Wings in 2013-14, Alfredsson, 44, who was named Ottawa’s captain in 1999 and has moved into an advisory role in the club’s hockey operations department, finished with 444 goals, 713 assists and 1,157 points in 1,246 games. He also won an Olympic gold medal with Team Sweden in 2006.
“Without a doubt, Daniel should be in the Hockey Hall of Fame,” Senators GM Pierre Dorion said Saturday after the NHL draft at the United Center. “I think for all his accomplishments in the NHL and internationally, being a gold medallist and being one of the game’s best players, at a certain time in his career, he definitely meets the criteria to be in the Hockey Hall of Fame.”
Alfredsson, who led the club to the Stanley Cup Final in 2007 but never won a title, became the first player in the modern history of the Senators to have his number raised to the rafters during a ceremony Dec. 29 at the Canadian Tire Centre.
He played 1,178 games with the Senators.
If Alfredsson doesn’t get voted in this time, he’ll remain eligible but this would be a major step for the organization if he were to be inducted in November.
“I think it would be great for our franchise,” Dorion added. “Daniel has been this franchise’s best player and for a young franchise of 25 years, to have somebody of Daniel’s calibre get in the Hockey Hall of Fame it would show this franchise is growing, and great recognition towards Daniel with his accomplishments.”
Alfredsson was a great player because of his consistency.
“What made Daniel so different as a hockey player is that every game he gave it his best,” Dorion said.
“Daniel’s ability to score the big goals was second to none; his ability to lift his game in bigger games was (something) special he had. Daniel was the ultimate performer and that’s why he was so successful for such a long time.”