Alfie: Trade or retirement not on horizon

The face of the Ottawa Senators franchise broke his silence for the first time since the organization underwent a significant face lift in the past month.

Daniel Alfredsson says it was tough to say goodbye to long-serving teammates like Mike Fisher and Chris Kelly, but he agrees with the decisions management had to make before the trade deadline.

“Obviously very sad… is the right word. We just haven’t performed well enough to justify ourselves staying together,” Alfredsson said on Wednesday. “Eugene and Bryan, they had to make a decision. As hard as it is, it’s probably the right one going forward.”

Alfredsson admits the Senators have been stuck in a hockey limbo since reaching the Stanley Cup final in 2007. The club has not won a playoff round since that magical run, but have tried to make themselves competitive by making big, splashy free agent signings each summer. The Senators, who now sit in last place in the Eastern Conference, are poised to miss the playoffs for a second time in three years.

“The toughest thing is if a team is pretty good — but not really that good that you’re challenging — you never get a chance to really re-build. You just try and fix one or two things here and there. It hasn’t worked for us,” Alfredsson explained.

With the Senators in full re-build mode, the obvious question was posed to the captain: Does he want to stay with Ottawa or take a page out of Raymond Bourque’s book and pursue a championship elsewhere?

“We hoped we would have been able to win a championship together (in Ottawa). I have such strong ties here. I want to win a Stanley Cup — but not with another team,” Alfredsson said.

Alfredsson says he would prefer to take on a mentorship role with the younger players, knowing that his window to win a championship may have closed on him in Ottawa. But he may not be able to help in an on-ice capacity again this season.

He has not played since February 7, citing a back injury that had hampered his production in the new year. Alfredsson hadn’t scored a goal in the last 10 games he played, one of many lengthy scoring droughts during a disappointing season.

The winger has been on the ice in recent days, but has suffered setbacks each time he tries to employ any power skating techniques. He describes the pain as a potential nerve issue in his back that causes him to lose power in his right leg. Surgery could be an option for him — but so too could returning to play some games down the stretch. He will undergo further tests in Ottawa next week, which will hopefully shed light on the full extent of the injury. Right now, his focus is on returning to play at least a handful of games this season, which would put him in a positive mental state this summer.

“I’m hoping that I can come back, but it’s not for certain. That’s my goal — to come back and play this year,” he said. “I think I just want to try to get it to a point where I feel strong. For myself, knowing that going into the training for the summer, that would be valuable for me.”

In the 2010-11 campaign, Alfredsson has collected just 14 goals and 31 points, which would be the worst offensive season of his career if he does not play again this season. Even with the mounting injuries and his slumping production, Alfredsson brushed aside any notions that retirement was on his radar in the next few months. Instead, he’s planning on coming to training camp in September with every intention of improving this suddenly young squad.

“I haven’t been able to help the players around me be as good as they can be. I want to come back next year and not have anything that bothers me,” he said.