Ottawa Senators' Jason Spezza wants the media to keep asking captain Daniel Alfredsson questions about his playing future. And more questions after that.

”You guys keep asking him about it and keep it in his head, because we want him to stick around,” Spezza said Friday.

In a radio address with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman on Thursday, Alfredsson said that he’s leaning toward returning next season, providing that his health holds up. He said the Senators’ surprising success has also kept him refreshed.

Alfredsson has one year remaining on his contract, but until this week he has been coy in discussing whether he would retire following the current season.

“I’ve always said that Alfie can play as long as he wants because of how smart he is playing the game,” said Spezza. “He doesn’t need his legs as much because he thinks the game so fast. If the season ended today, he would probably play again next year and we hope at the end of the season he feels the same way.’’

Fellow Senator Erik Karlsson echoed Spezza’s comments.

“We would like him to play another year, especially with the way he is playing right now,” Karlsson said.

Stars criticize Ovechkin’s no-show

By snubbing the all-star game, Washington Capitals star Alexander Ovechkin was a hot topic on media day Friday.

“You should be here,” said Toronto Maple Leafs winger Joffrey Lupul. “If you are chosen to come here, you should probably be here. It’s big. Even if it’s not that big an honour for you, it’s important for the NHL and this weekend is more about the fans than the players. I’m happy to be here.

“This whole weekend is centred around the fan. Ovechkin doesn’t want to come, but with (Sidney) Crosby out (with a concussion), he’s probably the biggest name in hockey. It would have been nice for him to be here.”

Ottawa Senators’ Jason Spezza was a bit more diplomatic, but he, too, felt Ovechkin should have made an appearance. Ovechkin passed on the game, saying his heart wasn’t into it after being suspended by the league for three games earlier in the week.

“My personal view is that it’s a huge honour and something that, as a kid, I watched and enjoyed,” Spezza said. “Whenever I get the opportunity, I jump at it, but you never want to comment on other people’s situations and what they’re going through. But for me, it’s a no-brainer.”

No coaching tips from Tortorella

For one day at least, New York Rangers coach John Tortorella won’t be chirping at his players or the referees.

Tortorella, who will be coaching Team Alfredsson in Sunday’s game, says he will have no impact whatsoever, claiming he will serve as nothing more than a fan behind the bench.

He says he won’t even be involved in making any line combinations.

“It’s their deal,” said Tortorella. “They’ll put the guys together and we’ll try to enjoy the talent that’s out there. I will just get out of the way. It needs to be about them. I’m anxious to watch them. I want to watch.”

Defensive defenceman gets his day

John Tortorella paid the ultimate compliment to New York Rangers defenceman Dan Girardi, saying that if it wasn’t for Girardi’s game, he probably wouldn’t be in Ottawa as an all-star coach.

The honour went to the coaches of the conference-leading teams and Tortorella says Girardi’s impact on the Rangers success can’t be overstated.

At the same time, he says the skills that make him so successful — blocking shots, clearing bodies, shutting down opponents any way possible — don’t translate well into a wide open all-star game.

“This isn’t a great game for him, by any stretch and they could probably put him at forward,” the Rangers coach said. “I think sometimes our league forgets about players like that. It restores a little faith that the league stepped up and where credit was deserved, gave it to him. It’s not just pedigree. It’s about what he has done on the ice (this year).”

Chara says Datsyuk is NHL’s best

If you ask Zdeno Chara to name the NHL’s best player, he won’t say Sidney Crosby or Alex Ovechkin or Jonathan Toews.

In his eyes, the tag belongs to Detroit Red Wings centre Pavel Datsyuk, which explains why he chose him first overall in Thursday’s fantasy draft.

“His talent is probably as good as anybody’s,” said Chara, the Boston Bruins’ captain. “He’s a guy who plays the game the right way, both ways and he’s willing to work extremely hard, whatever team needs.

“He’s underrated in terms of how strong he is on skate. I think he weighs about 190 pounds, but a lot of times, he plays like a 220-, 230-pound guy. He’s so hard to get off the puck.”

Boo-birds no bother to Lupul

Give Joffrey Lupul credit.

He took the booing Thursday night in stride, understanding that it comes with the territory of being a Toronto Maple Leafs player in hostile hockey country, booed throughout the fantasy draft.

“It was fun, honestly,” he said. “I didn’t quite expect that reaction, but you know, I enjoyed it. It was nice to get a little boo from Ottawa fans once in a while. When I picked Phil (Kessel) and I gave him the jersey and we both really got it for a while, so that was fun.”

Quebec City, here we come?

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has always been a glass-is-half-full kind of guy in discussing the state of the league’s fragile franchises, but even he has opened the door for the Phoenix Coyotes to finally leave Arizona.

“We’re going to try to avoid a move of the Coyotes, but if we don’t sell the club, I’m not sure that this won’t be the last season here,” Bettman said during his radio show Thursday.

While Bettman said there are three groups which have shown serious interest in buying the team, we’ve heard that broken record countless times since the NHL purchased the team out of bankruptcy way back in 2009.

With potential sellout crowds looming in Quebec City if the NHL returned, Bettman is feeling pressure among the league’s board of governors to move on from the grand mistake of moving the Coyotes franchise to Glendale, Arizona.

The move of the Atlanta Thrashers to Winnipeg following the 2010-11 season has also been an enormous success.

Hockey matters in Winnipeg, while few people cared in Atlanta.

Hockey matters in Quebec City, while the empty seats in Glendale are an indication of limited fan interest in Arizona. The Coyotes have an average attendance of 11,633, last in the NHL.

Incidentally, Bettman is expected to provide a more detailed update of the situation during Saturday’s board of governors meetings.

At least the fans care in Columbus

Columbus fans, frustrated by the Blue Jackets’ terrible season, will gather outside Nationwide Arena on Saturday afternoon, demanding a change in management, including the firing of general manager Scott Howson.

“It is like unconditional love with your child, you aren’t going to accept an ‘F’ when you know they are capable of an ‘A’,” John Arvai, a passionate Blue Jackets fan, told a Columbus NBC affiliate.

It appears that Arvai and other fans won’t get their wish. Blue Jackets owner John P. McConnell told the Columbus Dispatch that neither Howson nor team president Mike Priest will be fired — at least not yet. McConnell did, however, throw oil on the already hot rumours of a possible big trade — perhaps involving Jeff Carter, by saying changes are imminent.

The Blue Jackets spent to the salary cap maximum last summer, bringing in both Carter and James Wisniewski, in the hopes of ending years of futility. Instead, they rank dead last in the league with a 13-30-6 record, outscored 163-115 in the process.

“We’re getting to the point very quickly where it’s going to be obvious to people how extreme we’re getting,” McConnell said.

The Blue Jackets owner also threw goaltender Steve Mason under the bus when asked what has gone so wrong.

“You can’t look at one thing. Goaltending is certainly No. 1 on the list.”

Mason has a 5-18-2 record, with a 3.43 goals-against average and .882 save percentage.

Campbell will be popular

One player who will be hearing his fair share of applause at the all-star game will be Florida Panthers defenceman Brian Campbell, who had a storied career with the Ontario Hockey League’s Ottawa 67’s, winning the Memorial Cup in 1998-99.

To be able to return to Ottawa for the all-star game is special, he said.

“It’s kind of like full circle," he said. "I won a Memorial Cup here, played four years of junior for a Hall of Fame coach (Brian Kilrea) — it was a lot of fun.

“It’s great to be back, to see some old faces and the fans. I feel pretty honoured to be here.’’