Free agency is supposed to be one of the most exciting days of the year but for the Ottawa Senators, it is shaping up to be one of the most terrifying in the history of the franchise.
The Captain, Daniel Alfredsson remains unsigned with the market for unrestricted free agents set to open today at 12:00 PM. And while all signs still point to Alfie returning to Ottawa for his final season, the uncertainty has caused a whole lot of hand-wringing in the Nation’s Capital. It’s believed the Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings both remain very interested in his services.
At a press conference yesterday, Sens GM Bryan Murray remained confident that a deal would get done in Ottawa. Then there were a couple comments from a Swedish TV station that seemed to indicate Alfie was leaning towards returning. But the longer this drags on, the more reason we have to be nervous.
This could end up being a defining day in the history of this franchise.
While Alfredsson remains the top priority, the Senators find themselves accidently right in the mix for David Clarkson. While the Sens did not approach Clarkson directly, Clarkson and his agent did approach Ottawa. The two sides met on Wednesday and it’s clear Clarkson has a real interest in playing in Ottawa.
Still think the Sens are a longshot on this front. Both Edmonton and Toronto have interest as well.
- In case you missed it, an interesting story on the cover of today’s Ottawa Citizen. A big ol’ tip of the cap the Sens blogosphere for pushing this issue into the spotlight. Travis Yost and I have had our differences in the past but he has been working extremely hard on this story. His work, along with The 6th Sens and discussion that started here, has made this something that can’t be ignored. All this "noise" will be silenced a little if the Sens spend some money today.
