Yes, friends. In honor of his 1000th NHL game, all with the Ottawa Senators, today we, the citizens of the great city of Ottawa, celebrate our Captain, #11 himself, by declaring April 10th to be Daniel Alfredsson day! <3:

I have a replica of that jersey :D

For those of you who don't know him, Daniel Alfredsson is the Captain of the Senators (and if you don't know who they are, you need to watch more hockey). 5-time All-Star (including his rookie year), Calder Trophy winner, Gold Medal Olympian (2006), holder of just about every offensive record the team has (and still holds two with Frolunda HC from when he played for them during the '04-'05 lockout), the bane of everything Maple Leafs, and an all around excellent person who has spent the last 15 years making both the Senators and the city better.

Soft spoken, humble and quick to praise his teammates, Alfie, as he is affectionately known, embodies qualities I had long thought lost in this corrupt world of ours. Through hard work, sacrifice and dedication Alfie leads by example. He trains hard, plays hard and loves this community dearly having contributied many hours, and a great many dollars, to local charities over the years.

with Mike Fisher, left, who recently got engaged to singer Carrie Underwood

I once met Alfie a couple of years ago. I had gone to a late showing of The Da Vinci Code and while leaving the theater saw that he was also there. This was quickly noticed by just about everyone, and he took the time to shake hands and talk to us. Now, this was at midnight, after a movie, and during a huge slump for both him and the team. It was our worst start to a season since the early 90's, and had many people calling for his head. But he still stopped and talked to anyone who wanted to, supporter and complainer alike. The man simply exudes class.

So today we honor our Captain, our inspiration, our friend. In a world of Tiger Woods' and Michael Vick's, here is someone that can be held up as a role model. A man who has given the Senators current history to be proud of so that we no longer need to look back to the era of the Silver Seven for glory. A franchise player like no other, who I have no doubt will be the first Senator of the modern era to have his number retired. Seriously, when he finally brings us a Stanley Cup he won't be able to get arrested in this town.

and yes, that's real.

Not bad for a skinny kid from Sweeden, eh?

Unbelieveable! I couldn't find the Ottawa Citizen article online, but I found a reprint of the Citizen's article on the Vancouver Sun page. Oh well. Enjoy, and Praise Alfie!