The SBP Archives - Your less than frequent dose of SBP!

With his one goal and five assists in 11 games, Senators fans are wanting answers as to why Daniel Alfredsson isn't performing as he's capable of. It seems so many are eager to trade him away and forget everything he's done, because he cares for the team and cares for the city he lives in.

Back in 1995-96, Alfredsson played his first NHL season with Ottawa after being picked in the 6th round in the 1994 entry draft. Tallying 26 goals and 61 points, he won the NHL Calder trophy for top rookie. (I should point out this is the only player trophy the Senators have won since being brought back in the league in 1992).

He had one year remaining on a contract that paid him the league minimum, but unlike many pro-athletes who would sit on the sidelines demanding a pay hike, Alfredsson played out his contract, noting he was grateful for getting the opportunity to play for the Senators, and realized another solid year would earn him a bigger pay day for his next contract.

The contrast to the team's other star of the day, Alexei Yashin, was quite evident. Alfie was given the "C" after Yashin refused to play the 1999-2000 season for $3 million despite the one year remaining on his contract and demanded a trade if it wasn't re-negotiated. Yashin returned the following year but Alfie kept the "C", and soon Yashin left Ottawa for good.

When Alfredsson's contract expired at the end of the 2004 season, he could have opted to explore free agency and say goodbye to the Senators (see: Havlat, Martin and Chara, Zdeno). Instead of a bigger payday he could have received signing with a team like the New York Rangers, Alfredsson opted to go for a lesser payday but a more secure 5-year contract with Ottawa, essentially make him a Senator for life. He likes the fact Ottawa is a hockey city, and recognizes that Ottawa is one of the best NHL cities to raise a family and wants to bring its citizens a Stanley Cup. No contract could persuade him to live in a gated community somewhere in St Louis.

It is so rare that a player like Daniel Alfredsson actually has a little something called loyalty that few players possess. Maybe he should look at the Ottawa franchise as little more than a way to pays the bills. But he hasn't, and wants to retire here. Players like Joe Sakic and Steve Yzerman played for one franchise their entire careers which is a rarity in itself. Alfredsson could be one of those players, and I want to see the day where that #11 is raised to the rafters at Scotiabank Place (right beside a Stanley Cup banner would be nice, of course!).

Fans may not like his interviews, because he does talk in a very boring, monotone way. People say as a result he doesn't care, but this city should look no further down the road than fellow Swede Mats Sundin, who both work just as hard and have an interview that is not terribly exciting. If Alfie were to be shipped to Toronto or Sundin to Ottawa, both would be welcome with open arms.

I guess it just puzzles me that so many people are calling in the radio stations to have him traded or his captaincy removed. Why aren't people calling in asking maybe Ottawa should be looking for a decent forward for Alfredsson to play with? Chris Kelly and Dean McAmmond are 3rd/4th line players at best. Maybe John Muckler shouldn't have counted on an unproven Alexei Kaigorodov to be the 2nd line centreman, who was demoted to Binghamton this week.

Anyway, Alfredsson is struggling right now, so fans are hitting the panic button and want him out. Every player struggles. Every player hits a cold streak once in a while. Maybe it's a good thing it happened in October, for it could pay big dividends in the Spring. I have full confidence Ottawa can turns things around and so can Alfie.

Trading the team captain, in my opinion, would be a huge mistake.

Other thoughts: I'm going to my first game of the season tonight, getting a sweet discount on 100 level seats. With Martin Gerber facing his old team, I expect Ottawa to play hard for him and come out with a win. October is done, and the Senators will be playing lots of hockey in November that will hopefully erase the tough start they've had.