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Friday, October 15, 1999
Sad reminders of moving days
The Senators sat in a dressing room yesterday which wouldn't exist if it wasn't for the death of the Winnipeg Jets. Tomorrow, Ottawa's hockey team visits the new home of the former Quebec Nordiques -- in Denver.
And as they prepared to take on the Phoenix Coyotes last night at the America West Arena, talk of the wagons circling the Senators' future was leaking out of Ottawa with the word there is no government assistance coming.
Isn't it ironic?
"It's not something you want to think about," said Ottawan Jason York, standing in the hallway in the bowels of the fancy arena.
LOTTERY NIXED
Talk that the Senators could be headed for such hockey hotbeds as Houston or Portland surfaced again when the provincial government made it clear it wouldn't support a federal lottery designed to assist overtaxed NHL teams in Canada.
While Senators owner Rod Bryden denies it, the word is the team could be put up for sale in December if the club doesn't get some indication from all levels of government that the team will get some kind of tax relief.
Sources say the reports may be premature since the fight is far from over for Bryden and that Prime Minister Jean Chretien backs the idea of the government doing its part to help keep hockey alive in Canada.
The players, far removed from the situation especially with the team preparing for its sixth game of the regular season, just hope Bryden has enough power to convince the people of Canada to keep hockey alive.
"I've only heard the man (Bryden) speak twice, but if he can't convince them I don't know who (can)," said Senators winger Kevin Dineen. "You listen to him and he speaks so strongly.
"You just hope that he's able to convince these people that hockey is as important to our culture as the National Arts Centre and the other theatre groups that the government helps to support.
"It'd be very disappointing to see something like this happen. We're off to such a good start and it really seems like we're rallying the support of the city right now and we've got everybody behind us."
Dineen has been through the death of a team before -- when the Hartford Whalers moved to Carolina -- and he doesn't want to experience that again. As a player, he knows moving can be an emotional experience.
"The NHL Players Association tries to distance itself from these issues because they like to look at it from the standpoint of having the most stable franchises in the league," said Dineen.
"But, as players, it's hard not to get emotionally involved. In Winnipeg, it dragged on for a long time and in Quebec it just happened overnight. I know from my own experience in Hartford, it was very difficult for me to see the kids with the jerseys. It's hard when you're close to the situation."
The Senators know there is nothing they can do to help Bryden win his battle with the government. The players are in the business of winning games, it's up to somebody else to fight the fight in the boardroom.
Still, they know they want to stay put.
PLAYERS LOVE OTTAWA
"Everybody in this room loves Ottawa and we all want to be there," said Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson, speaking from the heart.
"It would be a tough thing to see it sold and moved because everything is going so great.
"The team is going in the right direction, we're getting the support of the city. There's nothing we can do about it as players but hope that everything works out and hope that Mr. Bryden can come to some kind of an agreement."
The only thing the players can worry about is winning hockey games so that they can get the support of the fans and the Corel Centre is full on a regular basis.
Nobody wants to play in front of an empty arena and the players are quite sure Bryden isn't interested in following in the footsteps of the Nordiques and Jets.
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