Ottawa Senators Relocating Wouldn’t Be The Worst Thing To Happen

Ottawa Senators Eugene Melnyk is threatening to move the team if he can’t make money. That might not be a bad idea.

Ottawa Senators’ owner Eugene Melnyk chose a horrible time to threaten the possibility of relocation. He did so during what was supposed to be a huge moment for the team and city. However, it may not be the worst thing to happen to the franchise.

In what was supposed to be a 100-year celebration of NHL hockey held in Ottawa, Melnyk overshadowed the entire event with his comments about possibly moving the Senators out of town. Ottawa has been in the league since 1992. But lately attendance has taken a significant dip and the owner has clearly become restless.

In 15 years of Senators hockey, few fan bases have suffered as much heartbreak as those in Ottawa. Year after year, it seems decisions from management or players begging to leave town have left fans exhausted and hesitant to buy into the current product.

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Almost as soon as the franchise began it seemed poor decisions followed. In the 1993 draft, Ottawa selected infamous draft bust Alexandre Daigle first overall instead of Hall of Famers Chris Pronger and Paul Kariya.

Former Captain Alexei Yashin was stripped of his captaincy and suspended for the entire 1999-2000 season after continuously demanding new contracts and refusing to report to the club. The Senators finally traded him in 2001 for two players who would become two of the best players in franchise history – Jason Spezza and Zdeno Chara. Unfortunately, both players would leave town on bad terms and provide Ottawa with virtually nothing in return.

Spezza was traded to the Dallas Stars in 2014 for a bag of pucks. Chara left as a free agent in 2006 when Ottawa refused to pay him. He’d then go on to become captain of the Boston Bruins and win the Stanley Cup in the 2010-11 season. Oh yeah, and the Bruins are an Atlantic Division rival of the Senators.

One of Spezza’s best wingers in Ottawa was Dany Heatley. He scored 180 goals in four seasons with the Senators. Heatley was a fan favorite and was a major piece to the Senators run to the Stanley Cup Finals in the 2006-07 season, recording 22 points in 20 playoff games. Unfortunately, Heatley would also end his tenure in Ottawa on bad terms after demanding a trade in 2009.

The greatest player in franchise history, Daniel Alfredsson, also left on bad terms when the club refused to pay him what he wanted so he bolted for the Detroit Red Wings in 2013. Immediately, the Senators attempted to manipulate the story into claiming Alfredsson believed he had a better chance of winning in Detroit. However, he later made it clear the team simply wasn’t interested in paying him what he was worth.

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Then, of course, there was the revolving door of coaches that began in the 2007-08 season and continues today. In fact, between the 2007-08 and 2017-18 seasons, Ottawa has had seven different coaches. On top of this, there were already rumors swirling around current coach Guy Boucher could potentially be on the hot seat despite only being in his second season and leading Ottawa to the Eastern Conference Finals last year.

It’s no wonder the fan base failed to sell out their arena in those Eastern Conference Final games. They’ve been tortured with star players leaving for nothing, and the constant change of philosophy and team direction. Any time they buy into the current product one of the best players is suddenly gone and a new coach is put into place. Even key players from last year’s team like Marc Methot and Kyle Turris are already long gone.

Then there’s the issue of where the arena is located. It’s roughly 30 minutes outside of downtown Ottawa, in an old building that feels cramped with little to offer in terms of food and beverage. At a time where other arenas are trying to provide as much variety as possible to cater to all sorts of audiences, the Canadian Tire Centre feels significantly dated. There’s also a horrible parking issue that can see fans wait over an hour to leave the area.

Some will argue a new downtown building could solve all the problems and fix everything. However, this is the same fan base that seven months ago didn’t even want to drive 30 minutes to support their team in the playoffs against Sidney Crosby. As a Canadian market against Canada’s best player in a heated series, that is simply embarrassing. That would not happen in any other Canadian market.

A new downtown arena would be a short-term fix. There would be sellouts for the first season or two up until Erik Karlsson left town for peanuts. Once the heartbreak of losing another key player for nothing returned to the Ottawa market, they’d stop coming to a new arena no matter how fancy it’d be.

One thing working against Ottawa when it comes to relocation is Quebec City has an NHL-ready arena sitting and waiting for a franchise. It’s an easy move across the Ontario/Quebec provincial border and the geography creates little-to-no impact within the Atlantic Division. Plus, Canada wouldn’t whine they’d be losing an NHL franchise if Ottawa were to relocate to Quebec City.

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Commissioner Gary Bettman said the Senators aren’t going anywhere after Melnyk’s comments but of course he was going to say that while in Ottawa. The truth is the damage might already be done. The fan base may be too fed up and heartbroken after years of torment.

It might just be in everyone’s best interest to move on.