Senators notebook: Fans love Fisher, Melnyk hates ‘drunken guys’
On Thursday, the Scotiabank Place crowd greeted the returning Mike Fisher with a warm welcome 11 minutes into the game.
On Thursday, the Scotiabank Place crowd greeted the returning Mike Fisher with a warm welcome 11 minutes into the game.
As the Ottawa Senators paid tribute to Fisher’s career with the Senators in a video highlight package on the scoreboard, he received a standing ovation.
It marked quite the contrast from the mood in the building when the Toronto Maple Leafs visited last Saturday. According to Senators owner Eugene Melnyk, that atmosphere can’t be tolerated. Melnyk, talking early Thursday afternoon in a fan chat with season ticket holders, vowed to make changes.
“It doesn’t burn anybody worse than me to see drunken guys walking around, bullying people,” he said. Melnyk also said that the organization was “on top” of the situation, claiming that the team is “not going to tolerate it,” while also pushing fans to buy more season tickets in order to prevent the influx of non-Senators fans.
How exactly the Senators will be able to enforce the “zero tolerance” policy promised by Melnyk on the next visit by the Maple Leafs will be intriguing. That comes on March 17, which just happens to be St. Patrick’s Day. When the wave of blue and white fans arrive, security will apparently be on the lookout for fans who have had too much beer, green or otherwise.
THE BIG HOUSE IS BIG TIME, CONDRA SAYS: Senators winger Erik Condra has no doubt next year’s Winter Classic between Toronto and Detroit at Michigan’s legendary Big House stadium will be a grand success. Condra grew up 20 minutes from Michigan Stadium and he was there before the start of the NHL season, part of the 109,000 in the crowd, watching his alma mater Notre Dame Fighting Irish play Michigan in a football game. “It will be a great atmosphere for sure,” said Condra. “A lot of Red Wings fans are Michigan football fans and Toronto fans, well, they come from everywhere. It will be a great place for the game. It holds so many people. Maybe some of he people in the top seats aren’t going to get a great view, but I was at the top and I could see.”
More than 104,000 attended The Michigan-Michigan State Cold War game on Dec. 11, 2010 holds the record for most fans to ever attend a hockey game. Senators farmhand Louie Caporusso, now playing with the Elmira Jackals in the ECHL, played in that game.
QUOTES OF THE DAY: The veteran Senators players were happy to see Fisher back in town and showed their respect with some good natured ribbing. “I miss his smile…I don’t miss his singing, by the way,” Daniel Alfredsson said following Thursday’s morning skate. Ninety minutes later, as Fisher was surrounded by the media outside Nashville’s dressing room, Nick Foligno walked by. “Keep your head up,” he said, with a wide smile.
LOOKING FOR A SPARK: While the Senators went into Thursday’s game on a seven-game losing streak, defenceman Brian Lee returned to the lineup riding a personal six-game winning streak. Lee, who missed 11 games with a “lower body” injury, hadn’t been on the ice for a loss since Dec. 27. With Lee in, Matt Carkner was the healthy scratch on the blueline. With Bobby Butler back in the lineup, Zenon Konopka was a healthy scratch at forward.
I’ve not been to a habs game, but I have personal experience with the Laffs fans. I took the bus and the laffs fans were idiots even though their team lost. I have some suggestions.
For Laffs and Habs games, the Sens should only sell to season-ticket subscribers or ticket-package buyers online. The rest of the tickets should have to be bought at the Sens box office or Ottawa ticket outlets in person. Make it harder for the out-of-towners.
As for the obnoxious behaviour, DON’T SELL BEER TO PEOPLE WEARING OUT-OF-TOWN SWEATERS! JUST DON’T! You can defend it on the basis of the behaviour we’ve seen. Take the loss on the beer sales.
ottawa fans don,t drink ? Sober ottawa fans don,t key cars !!! That idea that ottawa fans don,t drink is just stupid. Another thing is , it is easy to get tickets from Sen,s season ticket holders who are eager to make a buck! Great fans eh !
If you go to the other 30 games without the Laffs or Habs fans, the Sens fans are not out of control. The problem is the Montreal and Toronto games.
If season-ticket subscribers give up their tickets to unruly fans, then cancel them as subscribers. I’m sure the Sens will come out ahead. People want to cancel based on just those problem games.
I hate to break it to you but Leaf fans aren’t just coming from out of town. In fact I bet the number of leaf fans that live in ottawa out number the number of sens fans….
Sincerely doubt that. Still, don’t see any reason why the Sens should be some sort of field trip for Laffs’ fans.
The Leafs have fans throughout the country. Few can get tickets to a Leafs home game, so they travel several hours to Ottawa to see their team play. It is not that they outnumber the Sens fans in the stands, rather it is they tend to be louder than the Sens fans. That they drink more or less than a local fan is difficult to tell. However, for many this is a major night out with their friends and beer is likely a regular part of their celebration.
Part of the solution lies with the Senators business management. Stop showing the sophmoric Leafs Suck videos. Stop putting the camera shots of Leafs Suck signs up on the big screen. These may may “excite” some of the Sens fans who respond with loud cheers, but they encourage an escalating battle of rude, classless behaviour from both sides.
I invoked my own solution several years ago. I share a pair of season tickets with two friends. I don’t select the Toronto tickets. Having obnoxious strangers shouting “we’re going to kick your ass” in my face is not part of the game experience I am looking for at $350 a game.
We’re obviously the destination for the rowdies who can’t get into the ACC. Fine, don’t rile them up, but still, the beer and alcohol has to get under control…
I may not have a solution but it’s pretty clear there is a problem with some of the Leaf fan’s behaviour which by my observation is largely fueled by alcohol. I agree with rbenn, the organzation needs to end this ‘Leafs Suck’ program. It doesn’t do anything positive for the Senators’ brand, quite the opposite in my opinion. As far as those groups of ‘fan’s’ that are obviously intoxicated and aggressive, out the door or don’t admit them in the first place. Perhap’s restricting the amount of alcohol served at the next game might make sense as well. How do you encourage Senator fan’s to buy tickets and attend these games? Not sure but maybe establishing some behaviour codes and decorum would be a good start.
If people really want, then designate Laffs or Habs games as ‘no-alcohol’ games. If someone is drunk, then it has to be snuck in, or they are drunk before getting there. Kick them out.
Eugene,
Go back to one beer per customer at a time, to start with, eliminate tall boys, don’t sell coolers, etc. Do a much better job checking for illicit liquor on entry. Just walk up the third level aisles after a Leafs game, look into rows and see empty mickeys where large gangs of TO fans sat – not so after Habs games. Ushers and supervisors only need to look at where Sens fans are obviously upset, or just ask some in Sens attire at random during intermission breaks where the problems are. Put 28 more ushers at the top of all level three aisles. Most of the ushers are far better educated than anyone else in the building – teachers, nurses, senior military, professors, senior public servants, lawyers – you have a whole bunch of very qualified “management consultants” with critical thinking abilities whose possible contribution is deliberately stifled by the small minds who hold management and supervisory positions in that dept.
Mr. Biovail … Buy them an island to play on . Passports to get in….. Why don,t the whole bunch of you grow up ! Every team in the nhl has dumb fans including toronto and believe it or not THE NATIONS CAPITAL ! Ottawa proved that on national television during the all star draft .
If I were the Senators I would be careful if they detain Leafs (or any opposing) fan,it makes its way to the Toronto media we’ll look even more small-town…
No, it will make the headlines as ‘Laffs rowdy fans misbehaving in Ottawa’. The Leafs nation rowdies are no more popular in Toronto…