LOAD UP THE MOVING VAN
Sens’ AHL team moving to Belleville
The Senators are bringing their prospects closer to home.
And, if the standing-room only crowd at the press conference Monday is any indication, the people of Belleville can’t wait to welcome them with open arms.
After more than a year of sometimes difficult negotiations, the Senators confirmed to a packed house of more than 400 that owner Eugene Melnyk has purchased the ownership of the club’s AHL affiliate in Binghamton and will move it north of the border to Belleville in 2017-18.
While the deal won’t be official until it’s rubber-stamped by the AHL’s board of governors in a telephone vote in the next two or three weeks, the paperwork has all been done and Belleville city council passed a resolution at a special meeting Monday to spend more than $18.5 million in upgrades to the Yardmen Arena.
That means high-level hockey will return to a place that lost its Ontario Hockey League franchise to Hamilton at the end of the 2014-15 campaign when the Belleville Bulls packed up and left. The Senators are convinced that after 15 years in Binghamton, this is the right move at the right time.
“The junior market was very strong here. They had (an average) of 2,500 people out here and we did the research on what it could have been,” said Melnyk, who owned the OHL’s St. Mike’s Majors and understands the market. “I’m very bullish. The whole (AHL) also brings up the attendance.
“I’ve gone through the attendance of all of the top-10 teams and I think this could be in the top 10. We’re very excited. The economics work. We’re paying for the players anyway so the incremental costs are not that great so we actually do well here.”
So excited are the Senators about the prospect of having their top prospects only a 2.5-hour drive away, they’ve signed an eight-year lease because they believe this is going be a strong marketplace.
Not only is Belleville closer in proximity to Ottawa than Binghamton — without the border to cross — the upgrades to the rink are going to be extensive. While the Bulls played on an Olympicsize pad, the rink will be brought to NHL/AHL standards and the seating will be raised to 4,400.
Yes, that’s smaller than the Broome County Arena in Binghamton, but Ottawa assistant GM Randy Lee indicated after meeting with Belleville Mayor Taso Christopher about the possibility nearly a year ago this felt like something the organization should pursue.
“Cities kick tires all the time, and there’s a lot of relocation in the AHL, but they threw the idea out and it just sort of stuck,” Lee said. “I didn’t know about the rink but they told us what their plans are for the rink and I knew the AHL wouldn’t approve it if it was a wider rink.
“They said, ‘Definitely, we’re going to go an AHL standard rink.’ Then, we talked about the amenities and I like the idea of a smaller rink. This 4,400-seats is perfect for the AHL. Utica is 4,500 and they sell out every game and their parent club is Vancouver. I’m not sure many people in Utica follow the Canucks. I know people in Belleville are going to follow the Senators.”
No, the whole town of more than 50,000 didn’t show up for the announcement, but it sure felt like it. There were representatives from the military base in nearby Trenton, local business owners from the chamber of commerce and some school kids got a break for an hour to watch the announcement.
By the time Melnyk got to the microphone, flanked by Lee, Christopher and city official Mark Fluhrrer, the Belleville Senators had already launched an official website and season tickets were up for sale.
Christopher has been pushing to bring back hockey and he couldn’t wipe the smile off his face.
“It’s a great place to live and it’s great place going forward for hockey,” said Christopher. “It’s a monumental day for the city of Belleville and the Quinte region.”
Make no mistake, the Senators are also excited about this.
They’ve got a chance to help expand their brand closer to what’s Toronto Maple Leafs territory and there will be natural AHL rivalries when the puck is dropped next year. The Habs are moving their affiliation to Laval next season and the Marlies are already at the Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto.
“The great thing here is we’ve got a whole year to get this ready and to sell tickets. Sometimes when American Hockey League franchise’s relocate they’ve only got a few months to get ready,” Lee said.
Getting this deal across the finish line was a huge relief for Lee, who has spent countless hours trying to get this move in place.
“The fact that it’s Ottawa and Belleville is just an ideal fit,” Lee said. “You couldn’t pick a better situation.”
Binghamton isn’t expected to be left empty-handed. They’ve been contacted by a team looking to move next season and it’s possible a deal could be announced in the new year.
Erik Karlsson will be given a few days to regroup, switching gears from pride of country to pride of NHL team.
The Senators captain, who felt the sting of Sweden’s shocking 3-2 overtime loss to Team Europe in a World Cup of Hockey semifinal on Sunday, will be back for Wednesday’s evening practice at Canadian Tire Centre.
From there, he will gradually be eased into the grind of the Senators training camp schedule.
“We were hoping, for sure, that he would end up with some positives,” said Senators coach Guy Boucher. “I’m sure there are some positives for him being one of the leaders on that team.”
Karlsson wore an “A” for Sweden. He scored the third-period tying goal, which sent to the game to extra time.
Karlsson was also outstanding in the most entertaining game of the tournament, when Sweden lost 4-3, also in overtime, to the feisty North America squad.
Ultimately, though, Tomas Tatar put the finishing touches on Europe’s surprising victory Sunday, meaning the anticipated SwedenCanada best-of-three showdown won’t happen.
“They came really close and he did well,” said Boucher. “You could see he had a big impact late in (Sunday’s) game.”
Boucher talked about the “learning opportunities” for Karlsson, believing that having him in so many crucial situations will serve as a benefit to the Senators.
“I’m sure he’s disappointed not to get the gold, but he has some things to bring back.”
The Senators will be careful in how they manage Karlsson’s time for the remainder of the week.
Following Wednesday’s workout, Karlsson will have Thursday off as the team travels to Montreal for an exhibition game against the Canadiens.
He will also take a break on Friday, before returning to the team on Saturday.
Boucher says there’s “a possibility” Karlsson could play in Saturday’s matinee against the Canadiens at the Canadian Tire Centre. That decision, however, will depend on how Karlsson feels and/or whether the Senators want a longer look at other players.
Boucher believes it’s the best way to work Karlsson back into the plan. “He will have four days off, plus parts of days,” said Boucher. “He’s getting both the leadership responsibility of being here and some rest.”