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This morning the Ottawa Senators announced through a partnership with York Entertainment that they would be opening their own sports bar in the ByWard Market.
With the influx and success sports bars like The Senate and MLSE’s Real Sports Bar & Grill being built in the ByWard Market, I suppose it was only a matter of time before the Senators decided to stake their claim and get their market share.
Via the press release:
“The Ottawa Senators (@Senators), along with York Entertainment, today announced the plans to open Sens House Sports Bar and Grill, a 5,000 square-foot, 250-seat restaurant located in the heart of Ottawa’s ByWard Market. The sports bar will be located on York Street, in second-floor space that previously housed the Hard Rock Café and will serve as the destination for Sens fans.
…
Sens House will offer an unparalleled entertainment experience, featuring a state-of-the-art retractable roof and 1,500 square-foot patio that will deliver one of the finest open-air dining environments in Ottawa during the summer months. The feature product of Sens House’s extensive menu will be old fashioned flat top burgers at great prices.”
So the featured item on the menu won’t be a Master Blaster hot dog?
That’s interesting, but will the restaurant be the destination of choice for Sens fans?
Bells and whistles aside, it will probably depend upon the quality of their food and beer.
Senators fans will also be able to enjoy the best Molson Coors products as they watch every Senators game and major sporting event on best quality high-definition television screens in the market.
Molson Coors products?
Noooooooooooooooooooooo.
Joking aside, it’s about time that the Senators opened up something of their own and it’s even better that the organization demonstrated an ability to open up something that’s downtown. With construction already well underway, doors are slated to open this June.
Lazar to the Memorial Cup
After being down two games to none in their WHL Championship series, with last night’s win over the Portland Winterhawks, the Edmonton Oil Kings punched their ticket to the Memorial Cup. In other words, it’s an opportunity to see a lot more of Senators 2013 first round pick Curtis Lazar on television.
Lazar tallied a shorthanded goal last and he finished the WHL playoffs with 10 goals and 12 assists in 21 games.
Spezza Trade Market Grows
In his latest for the Ottawa Sun, Bruce Garrioch has expanded the list of suitors from Anaheim and St. Louis to include the New York Rangers and the Florida Panthers.
Glen Sather often cannot help himself from pursuing big names, but the inclusion of the Florida Panthers is an interesting one because of their general shittiness and highly regarded farm system. They even possess the first overall selection in this year’s draft, although Bruce Garrioch downplayed the likelihood of that being in play in a prospective Senators deal.
The No. 1 pick overall in this year’s draft would certainly have some value for Ottawa but the Senators want to make the playoffs and need help immediately.
The Senators have told teams interested they won’t give Spezza away. The price has remained consistent: A top six forward, a good, high-end prospect and a No. 1 pick.
I don’t know whether Garrioch is stating his opinion or whether the Senators actually put some emphasized importance on making the playoffs rather than doing what’s in their best interests and allows them to vie for a Stanley Cup, but if the Senators prefer a deal that nets them NHL-ready prospects instead of the best available futures for Spezza, I’ll be extremely disappointed.
Wikstrand Signs ELC
I probably could have milked this as a post of its own last week, but Senators prospect Mikael Wikstrand has inked a three-year entry level contract with the Senators.
Wikstrand, a defenceman who was drafted by the Senators in the seventh round of the 2012 draft, has has put together some impressive seasons since then.
After putting up 11 goals and 25 points in 45 games with Mora of the Allsvenskan in 2012/13, Wikstrand tallied four goals and 11 points in 27 games this season before joining Frolunda of the higher division SHL.
Despite the jump in competition, Wikstrand’s production (four goals, 11 points in 19 games) and play did not miss a beat. It’s this kind of performance that has many wondering how soon Sens fans can expect to see Wikstrand playing in North America.
As Randy Lee explained in an interview for the Senators’ website, it may not be as soon as some were hoping for.
“Under the league rules, Mikael can come to North America next year but he can only play on the big club — he has to make the Ottawa Senators. If he doesn’t make the Senators he can’t go to Binghamton so most likely he would play another year in Frölunda. He can play at both levels (NHL or AHL) in two years.”
With a slew of defencemen already under contract for next season, it’s likely fans won’t be seeing Wikstrand play in North America for two years.
Leeder Sends an Email to Season Ticket Holders
This morning the Senators’ President and alternate governor sent an email out to season ticket holders that discussed many of the organization’s initiatives that he outlined as part of the organization’s five-year plan during his end of the season media availability.]]>
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