Devils Regain D-Man Daneyko Returns From Alcohol Rehab

New Jersey Devils defenseman Ken Daneyko is back after spending three months in rehab to deal with what he called a problem with binge drinking.

“Alcohol is my problem,” Daneyko said Monday, after the team announced he was cleared to begin practice today.

“I was a binge drinker. It’s been off and on for the last few years. I tried to do it on my own.”

Daneyko, 33, the only Devils player to appear in all 95 of the team’s playoff games, put himself into the NHL-sponsored substance abuse program on Nov. 1. He had missed the Devils’ last three games for what the team said were “personal reasons.”

“I just did not feel happy with myself inside,” said Daneyko, a former Spokane Flyers junior player. “It took a drastic step to take me away from the game that I love and my team.

“I just had to take a step back and get my life together.”

A 14-year-veteran and one of the senior players on the team, Daneyko played in 77 games last season. He is one of the standout defensemen on one of the top defensive teams in the league. Last year, the Devils led the NHL in fewest goals allowed.

The Ontario native was the team’s second choice and 18th pick overall in the 1982 draft. He has rarely missed a game, playing in at least 70 games each year for 10 seasons and in at least 80 for six seasons.

Daneyko said he has been skating on his own and is in “excellent” physical shape.

“I’m just excited to … get to playing hockey again,” he said.

Lou Lamoriello, Devils president and general manager, said Daneyko would begin no later than Feb. 28, after the Olympic break.

Daneyko wouldn’t say whether he would be continuing counseling or other treatment, saying he would follow the directions of the program.

“I’m going to continue to work at it each day,” he said. “It’s a long process, but at least I’m on the right track.”