The night before Daniel Alfredsson officially retired from the NHL two years ago, he broke down and cried while reading his prepared speech to himself.

Nobody saw the tears during Alfredsson’s private rehearsal and when he delivered the exact same speech to a sold out Canadian Tire Centre on December 4, 2014, he never broke down or had his voice quiver. He later joked that he got the crying out of the way before anybody could see him.

But Alfredsson admits that things could be different when his No. 11 jersey is raised to the rafters of Canadian Tire Centre on December 29.

“It will be emotional, I’m not afraid to cry. If I do, I’m fine with it. It’s cool,” Alfredsson said on Tuesday when asked about his jersey being retired. “But I’m pretty sure it will be emotional.”

Ever since he announced his retirement from the NHL almost two years ago, Ottawa Senators fans have been wondering when Alfredsson’s No. 11 would be retired by the hockey club.
 
On Tuesday afternoon they finally got their answer, as the club announced they would retire the long-time captain's jersey in a pre-game ceremony prior to a December 29 meeting with the Detroit Red Wings at Canadian Tire Centre. The start time for that game has been pushed to 8:00pm ET to accommodate the pre-game festivities. The team also announced they will have a gala for him at the Canadian Museum of History the night before.
 
Alfredsson said the selection of the Red Wings as the opponent was not coincidental; he asked the Senators if it was possible to schedule the game against the only other team that he played for in the NHL.
 
“We talked about scheduling and I thought that would be a fitting game,” said Alfredssson. “I think for me it’s good timing as well because a lot of family will be around at Christmas and they can stay a couple extra days.”
 
The Senators were able to keep their fan base in suspense for the past 24 hours, as they only revealed on Monday they would stage a major press conference on Tuesday afternoon with owner Eugene Melnyk, general manager Pierre Dorion and senior hockey advisor Bryan Murray in attendance. Alfredsson's name was deliberately left off the media advisory -- likely in an attempt to keep the news under wraps.
 
Alfredsson was informed by Sens president Cyril Leeder that his honour was being bestowed upon him and he admits the gravity of the news has yet to fully sink in.
 
“I don’t think I understand what it means yet to be honest,” admitted Alfredsson. “I think you get a different perspective after you retire. It’s extremely flattering and brings back a lot memories.”

Murray – the former Senators head coach and general manager – spoke about his admiration for Alfredsson.

“I’ve been really fortunate to coach a number of Hall of Famers over my career and I can tell you there is none better than Daniel Alfredsson,” Murray said. It’s a great achievement for any player to have his sweater retired. There are many words to describe Daniel Alfredsson: character, leader, big-time performer. And a very respectful player and person.”

The retirement of Alfredsson's jersey will mark the first time that a modern-day Senators player has been given that distinction. The No. 11 jersey that will hang in the rafters of Canadian Tire Centre will join the No. 8 - which was retired to honour Frank Finnigan, who played with the original incarnation of the Senators in the 1920s and 1930s.
 
Last summer, the Senators put together a panel consisting of local media and sports personalities and community leaders to help establish criteria for honouring retired Senators players. The group made a unaniumous decision to elect Alfredsson as the first modern-day player to have his sweater retired by the Senators.
 
“It’s probably the easiest committee meeting we’ll ever have,” joked owner Eugene Melnyk, who also had a seat on the committee.

Tuesday's announcement also puts the finishing touches on a reconciliation process between Alfredsson and the Senators which has been ongoing since their relationship went off the rails following the conclusion of the 2012-13 NHL campaign.
 
Alfredsson and the Senators had an awkward and public divorce in the summer of 2013, which ended with the long-time captain signing a one-year contract with Detroit. He was coaxed back to the Senators for his official retirement in December of 2014, with general manager Bryan Murray helping open the door for his return to the fold. The thawing of icy relations between Alfredsson and the Senators continued last summer, when the club announced he would return to the organization as a special advisor in the hockey operations department.

This summer Alfredsson said he was planning on moving back to Ottawa with his family and will assume the same role with the Senators hockey operations department for the 2016-17 season.
 
“It’s good that it worked out this way and I’m glad it worked out this way. It’s really great,” said Melnyk of the repaired relationship with Alfredsson. “We’re just happy for him, happy for the club and happy for the community.”
 
Alfredsson is the Senators' all-time leader in most major statistical categories including career goals (426), assists (682) and points (1108).
 
“We’re going to go through a lot more captains, a lot more great players and he’s the benchmark now,” added Melnyk. “If you want to be exceptional person and player, you have to outdo him. He’s the class of the group.”