By Alex Mahar [1]
The Belleville Senators are drawing local interest to the Ottawa Senators but some fans are still reluctant to give up generations of cheaering for the Maple Leafs and Canadiens. Credit: Belleville Senators
BELLEVILLE- As the NHL season kicks off again, hockey fans in the Quinte region are right in the middle of a trio of NHL rivalries [2]: the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators (the Battle of Ontario); the Leafs and the Montreal Canadiens (an age-old Original Six battle); and the Sens and the Canadiens, neighbours across the provincial border.
The arrival of the American Hockey League’s Belleville Senators has a new era of fans starting to cheer for the Ottawa Senators instead of Toronto or Montreal.
Belleville Senators account executive of ticket sales and services, Robert Somerville, [3]says people in Belleville are starting to cheer for the Ottawa Senators because of the Belleville Senators.
“Because Ottawa’s farm team is so close to Ottawa itself, people are starting to become Sens fans and you are finding new Sens fans in the city coming out to support their team. It’s getting the fans educated on their teams younger players and seeing them grow as players in to the NHL and local fans want to be a part of that experience.” said Somerville.
“Local fans had no connection to Binghamton which was the Sens old farm team so now you’re starting to see more people get behind the Senators with that connection.” Somerville adds.
While more Quinte fans are starting to pay attention to the Senators, the Leafs and Canadiens still remain the two powerhouse fan bases locally.
Loyalist College student, Nathan Struthers says being a Habs fan is a generational choice.
Montreal Canadiens fan, Nathan Struthers has been cheering for the Habs his entire life. Struthers says, “The Quinte region is the perfect middle ground to cheer for Toronto, Montreal or Ottawa. Photo by Alex Mahar/ QNet News
“My grandfathers and parents love the Habs, I love the Habs. You grow up watching it with your family and you just love it right from the beginning.” says Struthers.
Struthers adds, “This area is a good middle point for fans. You can cheer for the Leafs, Habs or Sens but I grew up a Habs fan and won’t make the switch.”
Loyalist College held a watch party on Wednesday night to celebrate the start of the NHL season. The Toronto Maple Leafs were at home to the Ottawa Senators.
Loyalist College held a new type of event Wednesday night with a watch party at Shark Tank Pub for hockey fans to hang out and watch the Battle of Ontario. Photo by Alex Mahar/QNet News
“It’s something that we want to do more of throughout the season. Maybe even for Hockey Night in Canada or just games through the week. Loyalist has tons of hockey fans and we want to give them a place to watch the game and cheer on the local NHL teams.”, said Lara Charette who manages the Shark Tank Pub [4].
Charette is a Maple Leafs fan. She says the area is filled with them.
“I think there is way more Leafs fans but sometimes you can get a good mix with the Belleville Senators in town and people wanting to cheer on the home team but with the history of the Maple Leafs there’s those die hard fans anywhere you go including around this area and they will just always love the Leafs.” said Charette who was decked out in Leafs gear.
The Senators returned to Ottawa for the 1992-1993 NHL season.
Before that, local fans were torn between the Maple Leafs and the Canadiens. The Belleville Senators give local fans a chance to become passionate about Ottawa, but fans in the Quinte region appear to be reluctant to switch from Toronto or Montreal based on generations of fandom passed down.
QNet News did a twitter poll was a poll for fans to vote their favourite team and the results were a heavy victory for the Leafs.
https://twitter.com/AlexMahar1/status/1178730875539853312
With another hockey season underway we will see which team wins the heart of the local fan base.