The Ottawa Senators announced that they will be retiring the number of longtime defenseman Chris Phillips on Feb. 18, 2020 when the Senators host the Buffalo Sabres. Phillips played his entire 17-year career with Ottawa between 1997 to 2015.
“Chris Phillips personifies all the wonderful things about being an Ottawa Senator,” said Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk. “He was drafted first overall in 1996, and we all watched him grow into a legendary competitor on the ice and a community leader and family man who has made Ottawa his home. I’m very pleased to announce that the Senators Player Honouring Committee has decided to retire Chris’ legendary number 4. I’m happy that generations of Senators fans both present and future will be able to learn and appreciate one of the greatest players and people in this team’s history.”
Phillips, who was the first overall pick in 1996, played 1,179 games with Ottawa in the NHL, scoring 71 goals and 288 points and served as alternate captain from 2006 until he retired. Phillips will be just the third player in Senators’ history to have their number required. Frank Finnigan and Daniel Alfredsson were the other two.
- NHL.com’s Dave Stubbs reports the good news that Montreal Canadiens Hall of Famer Guy Lafleur was discharged from a Montreal hospital Friday, following quadruple bypass surgery on Sept. 26, and has returned home and is resting in comfort. “My thanks to everyone for their incredible support,” said the 68-year-old Lafleur.
- The Winnipeg Free Press’ Mike McIntyre writes that with the way Ville Heinola is playing, it’s extremely unlikely that anyone will be able to bump him out of the rotation any time soon. The 18-year-old blueliner, who was the 20th overall pick in this year’s draft, can play up to nine games with the Jets before it burns the first year of his entry-level contract. Many believed the Jets were just using Heinola for the first nine games to help fill the void on Winnipeg’s defense while they wait for Dustin Byfuglien to decide on whether he wants to return and the return of injured Sami Niku. However, Heinola is playing so composed on the ice that it could be very possible that he’ll remain with the Jets indefinitely.