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With the Ottawa Senators officially out of post-season contention, Ottawa-area bars and pubs are bracing for a bust in business this spring.
The turn of events is a drastic one, given the major bump in business the team caused with its unexpected playoff performance last season when it made it all the way to the Eastern Conference finals.
For some bars, which were full to the brim with revellers last year, the team’s poor performance this season has already meant fans staying away on game night.
“We’ve already noticed fans not coming in and supporting as many games because they are officially out of the playoffs, so there’s none of that show of hope,” said Becky Stachel, manager at St. Louis Bar & Grill on Elgin Street. “Definitely we’ve not been as busy as we have been previously in the year. The Sens do definitely play a part in our early summer business when they do make the playoffs.”
That sentiment was shared a little closer to the Senators’ home arena.
Dan Cowley, manager at Don Cherry’s Sports Grill in Kanata, said his establishment would be packed on game nights as friends gathered to cheer on their hometown team. This year, things are likely to be far quieter.
“It’s definitely a big impact. It’s a huge bonus for us to get playoff games,” he said. “I’m hoping we get some of our fellow Ontario Leafs fans in to watch their games as long as they last. But it certainly won’t be anything like Ottawa because there’s nothing like the hometown and everybody wants to be with friends and other people when there’s a playoff game on.”
Stachel said the St. Louis is also hoping Leafs fans help to soften the blow of the Sens’ missed post season. She said the bar, already suffering lower foot traffic due to construction on Elgin Street, might need to put up some blue and white Maple Leafs signage to coax out some of that team’s fans.
“Canada and Ottawa love hockey,” she said. “We may have to change some of our signage to be more Toronto supportive to encourage them to come here and watch. Get on that bandwagon.”
The Senators’ performance during the 2017-2018 season has many of the team’s fans seeing a different kind of red heading into the playoffs. The team is near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings and there is rampant speculation about the future of the team’s popular captain Erik Karlsson who is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of next season. Some fans have gone so far as to start the #Melnykout campaign, erecting billboards and demanding Senator’s owner Eugene Melnyk sell the franchise.
On Friday, Senators’ general manager Pierre Dorion told a conference call of season’s ticket-holders that he plans to offer contracts to Karlsson and recently acquired Matt Duchene as early as July 1.
The current state of affairs between the team and some of its fans attracted the attention of Hockey Night in Canada commentator Don Cherry on Saturday night. Cherry called out Ottawa’s fans, pointing to the number of unsold seats left in the Canadian Tire Centre during the Senator’s playoff push last season.
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The turn of events is a drastic one, given the major bump in business the team caused with its unexpected playoff performance last season when it made it all the way to the Eastern Conference finals.
For some bars, which were full to the brim with revellers last year, the team’s poor performance this season has already meant fans staying away on game night.
“We’ve already noticed fans not coming in and supporting as many games because they are officially out of the playoffs, so there’s none of that show of hope,” said Becky Stachel, manager at St. Louis Bar & Grill on Elgin Street. “Definitely we’ve not been as busy as we have been previously in the year. The Sens do definitely play a part in our early summer business when they do make the playoffs.”
That sentiment was shared a little closer to the Senators’ home arena.
Dan Cowley, manager at Don Cherry’s Sports Grill in Kanata, said his establishment would be packed on game nights as friends gathered to cheer on their hometown team. This year, things are likely to be far quieter.
“It’s definitely a big impact. It’s a huge bonus for us to get playoff games,” he said. “I’m hoping we get some of our fellow Ontario Leafs fans in to watch their games as long as they last. But it certainly won’t be anything like Ottawa because there’s nothing like the hometown and everybody wants to be with friends and other people when there’s a playoff game on.”
Stachel said the St. Louis is also hoping Leafs fans help to soften the blow of the Sens’ missed post season. She said the bar, already suffering lower foot traffic due to construction on Elgin Street, might need to put up some blue and white Maple Leafs signage to coax out some of that team’s fans.
“Canada and Ottawa love hockey,” she said. “We may have to change some of our signage to be more Toronto supportive to encourage them to come here and watch. Get on that bandwagon.”
The Senators’ performance during the 2017-2018 season has many of the team’s fans seeing a different kind of red heading into the playoffs. The team is near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings and there is rampant speculation about the future of the team’s popular captain Erik Karlsson who is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of next season. Some fans have gone so far as to start the #Melnykout campaign, erecting billboards and demanding Senator’s owner Eugene Melnyk sell the franchise.
On Friday, Senators’ general manager Pierre Dorion told a conference call of season’s ticket-holders that he plans to offer contracts to Karlsson and recently acquired Matt Duchene as early as July 1.
The current state of affairs between the team and some of its fans attracted the attention of Hockey Night in Canada commentator Don Cherry on Saturday night. Cherry called out Ottawa’s fans, pointing to the number of unsold seats left in the Canadian Tire Centre during the Senator’s playoff push last season.
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