It would be more than fair to assess that this season for the Ottawa Senators has not gone according to plan.
After Vladimir Tarasenko and Joonas Korpisalo joined in free agency, stud defenceman Jake Sanderson inked an extension and the imminent return of No. 2 centre Josh Norris, the Sens were confident their rebuild had finally paid dividends and a playoff appearance was on the horizon.
Instead, they've found themselves once more in the NHL's basement, costing former general manager Pierre Dorion and head coach DJ Smith their jobs.
While Steve Staios has already taken over as general manager, interim head coach Jacques Martin is not expected to remain in the position past the conclusion of this season.
With the formal return of Daniel Alfredsson to the organization, might we see the Hall of Famer get a promotion from his assistant role?
"I haven't even thought about it," Alfredsson admitted to reporters Thursday, when asked if he'd be interested in taking over as bench boss. "It's been a very good and steep learning curve for myself, thrown into the coaching side of things.
"It has intrigued me, probably more than I thought," he continued. "But at the same time, I don't know where I'll go after this."
The Swede said that the opportunity to work with a veteran head coach in Martin and fellow assistant Ben Sexton has him bit by the coaching bug.
When asked who the next Senators coach should be, he was clear in his answer.
"You want a winning coach," Alfredsson said. "I can't say that there's one person that would fit perfectly or not. I think when management goes through their search, I'm sure they'll look at every attribute that the candidates have, and then choose accordingly."
Alfredsson, who played for the Senators for 19 years between 1994 and 2013, formally rejoined the organization in a player development role in October 2023, and was promoted to assistant coach following Smith's departure.
Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2022, the 51-year-old had his jersey retired by the Senators in 2016, just over two years after having retired.
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