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Ryan picks Alfie's scoring brain
Postmedia (Archived Content)
Nov 06, 2015 • November 6, 2015 • 1 minute read
Seeking a solution for his goal scoring woes, Bobby Ryan eagerly accepted a little help from a guy who potted 444 of them over an illustrious career.
At Thursday's morning skate, the Senators winger was boosted by the extra work he put in with Daniel Alfredsson, the team's senior advisor of hockey operations.
Alfredsson, the greatest player to ever wear a Senators jersey, occasionally helps out at practice while settling into his new role.
"We worked on a shot that I've struggled with for a very long time," said Ryan. "One little tip and it made a world of difference. We worked at it for a little bit, and I'm feeling a little more comfortable with it."
Ryan had four goals in the team's first dozen games before Thursday, but two of them were empty-netters. Hopeful of a more productive start -- especially after having so much trouble finding the back of the net near the end of last season -- Ryan said it's beneficial "just having having a guy like (Alfredsson), who has scored goals from everywhere, obviously."
"I gave him three passes with the same puck and they all went in the top left corner," said Ryan. "I was able to watch that, and watch how he handles the puck like that. It's still impressive."
Ryan added that all the players get a lift by seeing Alfredsson around Canadian Tire Centre.
"He's just a presence, right?" said Ryan. "I think that of the guys that didn't play with him, myself included "¦ having a guy like that in the room, that's been around a long time and that means as much as he does to the club, the attitude and enthusiasm that he still has for the game is infectious."
-- Don Brennan
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