It has been rumoured for a month now and talked about since he returned to Ottawa for his retirement ceremony. But this evening, Owner Eugene Melnyk took to Twitter to make it official.
Long-time Captain and fan favourite Daniel Alfredsson is joining the front office as a Senior Advisor of Hockey Operations.
For the last couple weeks, Alfredsson, Melnyk and Bryan Murray had held multiple discussions about determining exactly what a role would look like for Alfredsson and it would appear they have found a job description that works for both sides.
Alfredsson will work in the Senators hockey department starting this season, serving as an advisor to Bryan Murray. His role will include hockey operations duties at the National Hockey League level, from scouting to player development.
This is a move we’ve known was coming for some time now but it still feels like a hugely important moment for the franchise to make this official.
Aside from this being an important symbolic moment to officially bring Alfredsson back into the fold, it’s also great news to have another bright hockey mind in the front office. Alfredsson has always had a huge amount of influence on this franchise as a player and now he gets to continue that in the team’s front office.
Whether it be as an extra set of eyes for the scouting department, providing input on player personnel decisions, sharing ideas with the team’s Coaching staff or as a mentor to young players in the organization- it’s pretty easy to see why this is such a great hire for the organization.
It’s also great news for the city. As incredible as Alfredsson was on the ice for the Senators, he was always such a huge part of the Ottawa community. And while it sounds like it won’t happen right away, it’s awesome to know that Alfredsson and his family plan to make this their home long term.
Full news release available here.
Welcome home, Alfie!
