Stability in the front office has been tough to come by for the Ottawa Senators over the last number of years, which made an ordinary and relatively standard Tuesday news release feel all the more refreshing. The Senators announced a trio of new appointments earlier this week as follows:
1) Tom Hoof: Vice President, Marketing 2) Jeff Morander: Executive Vice President, Ticket Sales and Service 3) Gregg Olson: Chief Financial Officer
The announcement was paired with a number of internal promotions, plus a long-term contract extension with President of Business Operations, Anthony LeBlanc.
LeBlanc, who joined the Senators earlier in 2020, hasn’t hesitated to put his stamp on the team’s front office. The names introduced on Tuesday are former colleagues of LeBlanc’s from his time with the Arizona Coyotes.
While non-hockey operations hires don’t typically attract much attention in most markets, Ottawa is different. The perception of turmoil that has plagued off-ice management for the last few years puts moves like this under the microscope. Time will be the ultimate judge, but things feel stable and promising at this moment. With Eugene Melnyk articulating a plan to bring a Stanley Cup to Canada’s Capital, it’s nice to see an off-ice team being built to ensure that the experience getting there is world-class in every respect.
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In other stability-related news, the Senators announced this evening that the Belleville Senators have signed an extension with the city of Belleville to keep the team local through at least the 2026-27 American Hockey League season. Considering the great success the organization has had cultivating NHL-ready prospects in that environment, this is a positive step for the team.
On top of the term extension, the revised agreement also contains payment deferrals and an extension on the free rent period offered by the City to the team, as a means of ensuring that it can survive through the pandemic and thrive on the other side. The City estimates the savings to the Belleville Senators as being in the $640,000 range, which represents a clear and substantial commitment to the organization.
There’s certainly a public policy debate to be had around the value of investing taxpayer dollars into professional sports organizations, but it’s tough to argue about the merits and benefits of this relationship from the Senators’ perspective.
As always, thanks for reading.