It’s time to focus on another sports profile and in this post we have chosen the swedish hockey player Daniel Alfredsson who just announced that his career is over. In Sweden Alfredsson may not be recognized as a star such as Mats Sundin and Peter Forsberg, but if you ask anyone with an interest in hockey in Ottawa who they think is the greatest you’ll probably get a different answer than in Stockholm.
Daniel Alfredsson: A loyal leader
Between 1999-2013 Alfredsson was the team captain in Ottawa Senators. For a long time he played in a lethal lineup along with Dany Heatley and Jason Spezza. The biggest success of the Ottawa Senators was when they reached the Stanley Cup Finals in 2007 where they unfortunately lost in the final series against the Anaheim Mighty Ducks .
For those of us who follow the IIHF World Championship we remember Alfredsson as a loyal guy who always came home and played for the swedish national hockey team when Ottawa was eliminated from the NHL / Stanley Cup. This resulted in four World Championship medals : bronze in 1999 and 2001, silver in 1995 and 2004. Unfortunately, no World Championship gold medal. However, Alfredsson was a part of the swedish team in the Olympic Games in Torino who won the gold in 2006, which may be regarded as his greatest asset. In 2014 he got an Olympic silver medal after a curtailed Swedish team lost the final against Canada. In the World Championships 2012 Alfredsson were the captain of the national team.
Career summarized
Daniel Alfredsson was born in Gothenburg in 1972. During the NHL lockout 2004-2005 , he led Frölunda HC to a national championship for his home club. In the NHL-draft of 1994 , he was selected in the sixth round, 133rd player by Ottawa Senators. In 1995-1996 he made his first NHL season and was awarded the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year, just like Peter Forsberg during his first season. After various injuries and contractual problems things finally got better for Alfredsson who became captain of the Ottawa Senators in 1999. It was a title he would have until 2013 when he chose to go to Detroit for a chance to win the Stanley Cup.
However, there was no Stanley Cup for ” Alfie, ” which, like Mats Sundin, is going to be remembered primarily as a leader on the ice.
As a final gesture Daniel Alfredsson signed a contract for one game with Ottawa for a farewell in December 2014. Chicken Swedes will remember him mainly for his efforts in the Three Crowns Swedish national team. He was brilliant in the Olympics gold year 2006 and an excellent two-way player throughout his career.
More info: Daniel Alfredsson @ eliteprospects.com
