Belleville the likely destination for Baby Sens
Broome County officials have confirmed their Binghamton Senators are heading north in 2017 and sources agree Belleville, Ont., is the destination.
Fans and Broome County executive Debbie Preston are coming to terms with losing their American Hockey League team to Belleville, but unlike the sour 2015 departure of the OHL’s Belleville Bulls, AHL brass are soothing the loss with a replacement team.
When asked about losing the team to Belleville, but being able to maintain a similar-calibre team, Preston stated, “The AHL has committed to staying in Binghamton and Broome County and as long as the league keeps that commitment, I am satisfied,” indicating she’s pleased with the AHL’s arrangements to replace the Senators with one of the handful of teams being shuffled around under league restructuring plans.
When asked about the atmosphere around the New York state town with rumours now confirmed the Senators, which won a Calder Cup and represented the region since 2002, are heading out, Preston stated, “I’m sure some fans will be disappointed, but we have very passionate hockey fans in our community and I’m sure that if a new AHL team comes to our community, it will have a strong backing.”
Belleville’s mayor jumped the gun prematurely hinting at an announcement in advance of AHL executives, who control the reins.
“It won’t be up to Belleville to make that announcement,” a solid source said.
When reached for clarity on the outcome of the this week’s AHL board meeting, Jason Chaimovitch, the league’s vice-president of communications, remained tightlipped saying, “I do not currently anticipate there being anything to report regarding franchise movements.” So here is what we know. A Belleville negotiation committee led by Mayor Taso Christopher has to satisfy the league and franchise owners with major Yardmen Arena upgrades, which could require more than the $7 million they are estimated to spend on repairing the boards, floor and refrigeration system. In 2014, it was estimated the floor would cost at least $2 million to renovate.
Capacity is a major sticking point as Yardmen only seats about 3,200. In fact, it will cost the city in the region of $20 million over time to address all the deficiencies, including required seating needs.
The upgrades demanded for the 2017-18 season have to be approved by the AHL board, but according to an informed source there is “still a couple of things that need to be met.”
A number of people, including the ownership group and league, have to buy into the arrangement being ironed out now for months.
Belleville is looking for a longterm lease that would keep the team here for a period of about 10 years and more than five.
The ownership of the Binghamton team doesn’t necessarily have to change and all they need to do is find a suitable replacement for the team there in order to satisfy the three-year lease just signed with Broome County.
By all accounts, the sub-lease arrangement will be a seamless process once it’s agreed which AHL team fills the void in Binghamton.
Several teams in the United States are looking to move their teams to markets closer to their NHL affiliates.
Montreal’s farm team is already making the jump from St. John’s, NL, to Laval, Que., after relocating from Hamilton, Ont., in 2015 during the Bulls’ shuffle.
The Canadiens moved their top farm club from Hamilton to St. John’s, signing a two-year agreement, plus an option year, to play in Newfoundland. The tentative plan is for the Canadiens to move their farm team into a 10,000-seat arena being built in Laval that will be part of a $120-million multipurpose sports facility.
Belleville is inking stipulations in the deal to either give the municipality some sort of stakeholders’ interest or equity in the team that doesn’t necessarily carry the weight or responsibility of ownership, which could provide some surety the team can’t move on a whim.
Coun. Mitch Panciuk has said previously he favoured a longterm deal and wouldn’t be willing to budge on that link in the negotiation.
“If we’re ever to go in with a team again, we should not be in the same boat we were with the Bulls,” he said.
The provisions sought by the city would allow it to use its stake to potentially take over the team or find a local ownership group if need be, a source said.
This is not an immediate consideration, but sources say it would be written into the deal so if the proposed owners decide to pull out, the city could initiate the provision to keep the team where it is.
Broome County has lost a hockey franchise before. The New York Rangers’ farm team played there for years before relocating to become the Hartford Wolf Pack. The region had to settle for the B.C. Icemen of the United Hockey League, a mid-level professional hockey league, from 1997 until the AHL returned in 2002.
The region tasted championship success when the Baby Sens were crowned AHL champs in 2011.