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

If the Senators had managed to win the Stanley Cup in 2007, there likely wouldn't be much debate, if any at all.

But since Ottawa only managed to earn one victory in the finals and Anaheim got the required four, the question of whether or not Daniel Alfredsson should be included in the Hall of Fame will be debated until the day he retires (unless of course he managed to lead the Sens to the promised land before that happens).

His resume is pretty impressive: Winner of the Calder trophy as top rookie in 1996. Gold medal winner playing for Sweden at the 2006 Winter Olympics. Five time NHL all-star. Currently the longest serving Captain on any NHL team (10+ years), first European born Captain to bring his team to the Cup finals, pretty much a point a game player with 1001 games played and 992 points as of today. He is the best player that the Ottawa Senators have ever had on their roster since coming back to the league in 1992. His reputation of being a hard worker and a dedicated two-way player (came 2nd in voting in 2006 for the Selke Trophy) to complement his skill has allowed him to continue to play at a high level at the ripe old age of 37.

But the fact that his team has never gone all the way, and the fact he hasn't won a major individual trophy outside of his rookie of the year award have many questioning the merits of an Alfredsson induction for anyone not a fan of the Senators.

With Alfie's 1000th game celebration to take place tomorrow at Scotiabank Place, it's not hard to come to the realization his career is winding down, so looking back at what he's done and wondering if a Hall induction is in the cards is a natural progression of thought for me. More important than that, I hope a Stanley Cup win comes to him before he hangs up the skates. Time is running out and aside from that, he deserves it.