After announcing his retirement from the National Hockey League, Chris Neil talks about preparing for life after hockey, his excitement to play in the Sens Alumni Classic this weekend and more...

On preparing for the emotions that go along with announcing his retirement:

I had the "over" that I'd end up shedding a tear. I'm an emotional guy but just to see all the familiar faces, it's an emotional day. I feel relief now that it's over and I'm ready to move on to the next chapter in my life now that there's some closure. I'm looking forward to it, I really am.



On the timing of the announcement being so close to the Sens Alumni Classic tomorrow:

I've been in contact with the team and talking about doing it for a while. They were away on that long road trip and we were trying to find the proper time and when is the proper time so we kind of came up with this date. If it happened today then it happened today but if not I was going to play in the Alumni game regardless. I couldn't miss out on the opportunity to play with all my old pals.



On spending all 1,026 games with the Senators:

I've had the privilege to play a long, long time and see different eras come through. For me, back there when I first broke into the league there were some many guys that you looked up to. Not superstars but guys behind the scene like Curtis Leschyshyn, Shaun Van Allen, Patrick Lalime...you could go on and on and on. I'm really looking forward to seeing all these guys this weekend and just getting caught up.

Tweet from @Senators: ���I���m hoping Philly might take me in the first round.���Chris Neil has officially been added to the roster for tomorrow���s #Sens Alumni Classic. pic.twitter.com/4G1kMj9ASI



On being able to adapt with the times and situations over his career:

Obviously the game has changed, when I came into the league I was an offensive player in Junior and I wanted to play in the NHL so bad that I changed my role. I looked at the right side of the Ottawa Senators after being drafted by them and you've got Hossa, Havlat and Alfredsson and I was like: "Well...I'm going to have to change my role". That's just how it kind of worked out. Trevor Timmins pulled me aside when I got sent down to Grand Rapids and he told me that if I wanted to make this team I needed to go down, work hard and fight my way onto the team. So that's what I did. I always tell kids that if you want it bad enough you can create a niche and play a long, long time. Look at Shaun Van Allen, another guy who played a long, long time because he was awesome at face-offs, good two-way centreman but he goes down to the AHL and he's the leading scorer. You can't say enough about that. If you want it bad enough, you can do it.



Preparing for life after the NHL:

It seems like I'm at the rink a lot more than I ever was with the kids' stuff and the figure skating. There isn't a night that goes by that I'm not at the rink and I'm on the ice with the kids and stuff too and I still play men's league. I love the game of hockey and I'm passionate about the game of hockey and it'll always be a part of my life. Just because I'm retired from hockey, doesn't mean that I'm done playing it.



On never being suspended in the NHL:

There was one time that I thought I was going to get suspended. That was with the line brawl and Darcy Tucker jumped into our bench but I ended up getting a fine instead. Didn't miss any games but I think it's a fine line with the way I played. You have to play on that line but you can't cross it. You have to play right on it and I took pride in that. I was talking with David Poile from the Nashville Predators at Bryan Murray's funeral and he said: "You've never been suspended and I find that amazing". So you do take pride in it and it's something that over the years you have to change your game and adapt to the game. The game has gotten quicker, your timing for hits and when the proper time to hit is. For me, I've been able to adapt with it and that's why I was able to stick around for so long.

You can see Chris Neil back in a Senators jersey on Friday night at 7 p.m. as part of the Sens Alumni Classic that will take place at the Canada 150 Rink on Parliament Hill between Team Alfredsson and Team Phillips. For more details on the game, click here.

Instagram from @senators: ‪After 1,026 games, all with the #Sens, Chris Neil has officially announced his retirement from the @nhl. #Congrats‬