News Article: Big changes coming in for next season

[coladin]

It's quite possible, but I meant on the local front. Assuming things are even reconcilable, what's the end game?

Franchise is toast here and it is just a matter of time. He ain't selling. He will move it rather than sell . If he digs in, it will just be an NHL farm team for ever and ever Amen. They will play in front of sparse diehards, but nothing that they do will change the fact that people are done with the owner. Being Ottawans, they will cling to that aspect, while constantly harping on the organization not being run "properly". They can correct everything, but nothing will change the fact that Ottawa fans are smart and frugal.

Smart and frugal are the two worst qualities for a sports franchise to succeed. You need dumb neanderthals (like myself), to rah rah when things are a disaster and look for positives. They need dummies to go to games and support their team, and they have to oblivious to the fact that TV contracts have made in person attendance less critical (or so the smart and frugal think).

In the event that he sells because he simply can't survive with COVID, that may be Ottawa's only hope. But the NHL will not want to prop up Ottawa when there are other markets. COVID will make finances even more critical moving forward. They will point to dwindling attendance, meager support fan and corporate wise, unfair media, blame the city for not helping the Senators move downtown, and they will get the required support from the 24 other penny pinchers, who could give two shits about Ottawa, to find a location that makes the owners money, and costs the NHL owners less money.

Unless fans give the hate a rest, this will only get worse. And, honestly, the team and franchise are on the cusp of great things. Two huge pieces are going to join this team. Exciting pieces. They will be wearing the uniforms that we all want. Melnyk has all but retreated into a bunker and now wears a muzzle. The Belleville gang looks fantastic. Prices are cheap to cheer these guys on, and you can still hate the owner while doing so . Like I do.

 

[BonHoonLayneCornell]

Last year was definitely much lower. I also don't think we have the 19-20 revenue numbers which are probably lower too. EM isn't considered cheap because of 2019-20 spending, he was given that distinction before the complete tear down. Id be curious to see how much he cleared in 2018-19 vs 2019-20.

I do agree that when being called cheap, it is more in reference to the past, although I do think some would sling it his way for their inability to take advantage of their cap situation during these down years too, since instead of asset stockpiling, they went with things like the Zaitsev deal.

I was just trying to make sure we were on the level and that their inflated number with paid bonuses and LTIR wasn't being conveyed as Melnyk actually spending that cap number.

 

[GCK]

Isn't that number including "faux" salary though? I thought actual salary expenditures last year were around 47 mil until Names was brought in bringing it to about 50?

That was 18-19. I think it includes benefits and such since Columbus was at 89M

 

[AchtzehnBaby]

Franchise is toast here and it is just a matter of time. He ain't selling. He will move it rather than sell . If he digs in, it will just be an NHL farm team for ever and ever Amen. They will play in front of sparse diehards, but nothing that they do will change the fact that people are done with the owner. Being Ottawans, they will cling to that aspect, while constantly harping on the organization not being run "properly". They can correct everything, but nothing will change the fact that Ottawa fans are smart and frugal.

Smart and frugal are the two worst qualities for a sports franchise to succeed. You need dumb neanderthals (like myself), to rah rah when things are a disaster and look for positives. They need dummies to go to games and support their team, and they have to oblivious to the fact that TV contracts have made in person attendance less critical (or so the smart and frugal think).

In the event that he sells because he simply can't survive with COVID, that may be Ottawa's only hope. But the NHL will not want to prop up Ottawa when there are other markets. COVID will make finances even more critical moving forward. They will point to dwindling attendance, meager support fan and corporate wise, unfair media, blame the city for not helping the Senators move downtown, and they will get the required support from the 24 other penny pinchers, who could give two shits about Ottawa, to find a location that makes the owners money, and costs the NHL owners less money.

Unless fans give the hate a rest, this will only get worse. And, honestly, the team and franchise are on the cusp of great things. Two huge pieces are going to join this team. Exciting pieces. They will be wearing the uniforms that we all want. Melnyk has all but retreated into a bunker and now wears a muzzle. The Belleville gang looks fantastic. Prices are cheap to cheer these guys on, and you can still hate the owner while doing so . Like I do.

I still blame those that took Melnyk's "threatening" to move statement as a reason to boycott. Talk about an overreaction. Those same lame social media types that continue to make shit out of nothing are doing nothing but keeping Euge in place by making the team unsellable.

It's been known for years that this team is one of, if not the cheapest places to watch NHL (including the food and beverage costs!), but people still gripe about parking, cold water, and any other reason to make an excuse about the product they never want to buy into. They want the Ferrari but for the price of a Pontiac Sunfire.

This team is now a colossal embarrassment from the top of the organization all the way down to some of these so-called fans.

Thick skulls...

 

[DaveMatthew]

I still blame those that took Melnyk's "threatening" to move statement as a reason to boycott. Talk about an overreaction. Those same lame social media types that continue to make shit out of nothing are doing nothing but keeping Euge in place by making the team unsellable.

It's been known for years that this team is one of, if not the cheapest places to watch NHL (including the food and beverage costs!), but people still gripe about parking, cold water, and any other reason to make an excuse about the product they never want to buy into. They want the Ferrari but for the price of a Pontiac Sunfire.

This team is now a colossal embarrassment from the top of the organization all the way down to some of these so-called fans.

Thick skulls...

For years, Ottawa averaged 18,000+ fans per game. You seem to think that fans never went and always complained. This is completely untrue.

And to "boycotters" are not the problem. The die-hards who complain on talk radio and internet forums are not the problem. There's not enough of them to make a dent.

The casual fans are not going because the team sucks.

Bad team = people don't go.
Good team = people go.

It's a simple problem to solve. Start winning.

And no, you don't need to spend like the Leafs to have a competitive team.

 

[Tnuoc Alucard]

Very true. And the thing is, Ottawa has lots of money. I don't think people realize how wealthy this city , and its corporations are. I think how they spend their money, and how they do not, speaks more to bottom lines than anything else. But Ottawa certainly has enough corporations to prop up the CTC. They simply are not interested and the business model of 2020, hell even the last 10 years, does not require Sens tickets to make a deal. That is going away. They are going out to fancy dinners, and golfing now

Did you not read what @Micklebot posted (at the top of page 17)?

Ottawa has the "smallest corporate base to draw from by the NHLs own internal metric, roughly half the size of Winnipeg's. Let that sink in, their metro population is less than 60% of Ottawa's but they have almost twice the viable corporate entities to try and sell adds, seats and boxes too. "

 

[BonHoonLayneCornell]

I still blame those that took Melnyk's "threatening" to move statement as a reason to boycott. Talk about an overreaction. Those same lame social media types that continue to make shit out of nothing are doing nothing but keeping Euge in place by making the team unsellable.

It's been known for years that this team is one of, if not the cheapest places to watch NHL (including the food and beverage costs!), but people still gripe about parking, cold water, and any other reason to make an excuse about the product they never want to buy into. They want the Ferrari but for the price of a Pontiac Sunfire.

This team is now a colossal embarrassment from the top of the organization all the way down to some of these so-called fans.

Thick skulls...

Personal feelings aside, you're just letting him off the hook for what was a terrible decision that damaged the franchise possibly beyond recovery. The reaction to it was entirely predictable and to do what he did was an egregious error in judgement with catastrophic consequences, whether you frame it as threats, or just telling people they need to attend more to keep the team in Ottawa.

You can dispute whether fans were wrong and call them whiny, spoiled or whatever else, sure that could be a valid opinion to have, but it was the reality of where they were and his relationship with them at that point that needed to be assessed and reacted to accordingly. His effort to "rectify" the situation was so out of touch with his reputation of being the hated heel character in Ottawa already. Maybe it stings being the owner and being despised, and maybe you don't think that was fair to be that way, but it was still the reality and you have to work within that for the benefit of your business, or face the consequences.

I'd bet my life that if that had been Leeder, Karlsson or Alfie out there on parliament hill giving a properly prepared message instead, it would have been a non story.

People don't want to be told to get their act together by the person they hate the most and are blaming for the situation. He chose to pour gasoline on the fire, even if he wasn't the one that he or you feels started the fire.

 

[AchtzehnBaby]

Personal feelings aside, you're just letting him off the hook for what was a terrible decision that damaged the franchise possibly beyond recovery. The reaction to it was entirely predictable and to do what he did was an egregious error in judgement with catastrophic consequences, whether you frame it as threats, or just telling people they need to attend more to keep the team in Ottawa.

You can dispute whether fans were wrong and call them whiny, spoiled or whatever else, sure that could be a valid opinion to have, but it was the reality of where they were and his relationship with them at that point that needed to be assessed and reacted to accordingly. His effort to "rectify" the situation was so out of touch with his reputation of being the hated heel character in Ottawa already. Maybe it stings being the owner and being despised, and maybe you don't think that was fair to be that way, but it was still the reality and you have to work within that for the benefit of your business, or face the consequences.

I'd bet my life that if that had been Leeder, Karlsson or Alfie out there on parliament hill giving a properly prepared message instead, it would have been a non story.

People don't want to be told to get their act together by the person they hate the most and are blaming for the situation. He chose to pour gasoline on the fire, even if he wasn't the one that he or you feels started the fire.

Never said it was not a stupid thing to do or say on the eve of a big event. It totally was. Melnyk is not the guy you want speaking to the media. For sure.

Was it blown completely out of proportion? I think so.

 

[BonHoonLayneCornell]

Never said it was not a stupid thing to do or say on the eve of a big event. It totally was. Melnyk is not the guy you want speaking to the media. For sure.

Was it blown completely out of proportion? I think so.

Just feels like assigning bonus blame for the sake of it when being "blown out of proportion" was part of the predictable response.

 

[Flamingo]

For years, Ottawa averaged 18,000+ fans per game. You seem to think that fans never went and always complained. This is completely untrue.

And to "boycotters" are not the problem. The die-hards who complain on talk radio and internet forums are not the problem. There's not enough of them to make a dent.

The casual fans are not going because the team sucks.

Bad team = people don't go.
Good team = people go.

It's a simple problem to solve. Start winning.

And no, you don't need to spend like the Leafs to have a competitive team.

I think we're a small enough market that boycotters have an impact. I include fans that quit coming because the team traded their favourite players in that group.

And people who don't like the in-arena experience, and don't like the parking push it over the edge, making it hard to fill the arena even with promotions and discounts. It all adds up. Winning draws fans, for sure. An NHL team needs bums in the seats through years of poor performance too. Can Ottawa weather that storm? And can the new generation of players spark enough interest to re-engaged the disillusioned?

 

[Stylizer1]

This proves that EM is spending exactly what he should be based on his revenues. The richest guy is the league is spending $10 million more than the poorest. I'd say he is doing pretty well to hang in that company. We also don't know how the debt/ lease agreements compare etc. If Ottawa want's to spend like Calgary they should simply supply the same revenue as Calgary.

We also don't know what Eugene pockets at the end of the day. He definitely wants a percentage before anyone else gets their's.

 

[Sweatred]

We also don't know what Eugene pockets at the end of the day. He definitely wants a percentage before anyone else gets their's.

We have a pretty good idea it’s in the range of $3 million (Forbes) give or take ... we don’t know how debt repayment fits into that or any other costs/advantages.

 

[Micklebot]

Never said it was not a stupid thing to do or say on the eve of a big event. It totally was. Melnyk is not the guy you want speaking to the media. For sure.

Was it blown completely out of proportion? I think so.

It's hard to delineate what was a reaction to Melnyk's comments that day and what was the culmination of... well, everything, the list is too long.

In a bubble where his comments about selling/moving were the only thing, it was a massive over reaction. But Melnyk doesn't live in a bubble and it was pretty predictable that there would be outrage making a comment like that at an event where 30k fans just shelled out premium prices to celebrate 25 years of the team, little lone with all the other crap.

 

[AchtzehnBaby]

It's hard to delineate what was a reaction to Melnyk's comments that day and what was the culmination of... well, everything, the list is too long.

In a bubble where his comments about selling/moving were the only thing, it was a massive over reaction. But Melnyk doesn't live in a bubble and it was pretty predictable that there would be outrage making a comment like that at an event where 30k fans just shelled out premium prices to celebrate 25 years of the team, little lone with all the other crap.

It makes no sense to say he was talking to those that bought tickets to that game or bought tickets to games. He was talking to the fans that don't go to games, the many people that live in this city and do not support the team financially (if at all). He also whined about how much money the organization had to put into selling tickets corporately and for the casual fans. No other Canadian city has this problem.

 

[BatherSeason]

It makes no sense to say he was talking to those that bought tickets to that game or bought tickets to games. He was talking to the fans that don't go to games, the many people that live in this city and do not support the team financially (if at all). He also whined about how much money the organization had to put into selling tickets corporately and for the casual fans. No other Canadian city has this problem.

The key word here is "whined". Nobody likes to listen to a whiner. Kids that whine are the absolutely worst kids to be around. A millionaire whining about losing money does not resonate well with a lot of people.

 

[Micklebot]

It makes no sense to say he was talking to those that bought tickets to that game or bought tickets to games. He was talking to the fans that don't go to games, the many people that live in this city and do not support the team financially (if at all). He also whined about how much money the organization had to put into selling tickets corporately and for the casual fans. No other Canadian city has this problem.

So was he talking to the people that converted their full seasons to quarter seasons? Was he talking to the people who switched from 200 level to 300s? Was he talking to the people that used to buy a dozen games a year but now only managed 3 or 4?

Driving a wedge between your fans is a terrible idea, it's toxic and serves no good. Creating an us vs them situation within your own fanbase just seems like a pretty shortsighted strategy.

 

[AchtzehnBaby]

So was he talking to the people that converted their full seasons to quarter seasons? Was he talking to the people who switched from 200 level to 300s? Was he talking to the people that used to buy a dozen games a year but now only managed 3 or 4?

Driving a wedge between your fans is a terrible idea, it's toxic and serves no good. Creating an us vs them situation within your own fanbase just seems like a pretty shortsighted strategy.

I am saying he is not talking to anyone that bought any type of ticket... he is talking to the people that never come... or RARELY come.

 

[Wondercarrot]

lol, it’s hilarious how the same group who continuously blame the fans always pick each event as if it were an isolated incident and not years & years of ongoing dragging the franchise and the fans through the mud. Years and years of alienating players, fans, office staff, senior executives, business community, the city.

it’s like listening to Trump supporters.

 

[BankStreetParade]

For years, Ottawa averaged 18,000+ fans per game. You seem to think that fans never went and always complained. This is completely untrue.

And to "boycotters" are not the problem. The die-hards who complain on talk radio and internet forums are not the problem. There's not enough of them to make a dent.

The casual fans are not going because the team sucks.

Bad team = people don't go.
Good team = people go.

It's a simple problem to solve. Start winning.

And no, you don't need to spend like the Leafs to have a competitive team.

This discussion has been had 1000 times now. Averaging 18,000+ fans, on paper, sounds great. But what was the average ticket cost? How many were discounted, bought through promotions or just flat out giveaways? Did those people spend money when they were there?

The most important point you made though is also the most reflective of the dependability of this fanbase to generate consistent revenue which is they won't support a losing team.

 

[Micklebot]

I am saying he is not talking to anyone that bought any type of ticket... he is talking to the people that never come... or RARELY come.

So he is blaming drops in attendance on fans that didn't come prior to those drops? Seems like he's targetting the wrong people. You don't win new customers by telling them they suck.

 

[GCK]

So he is blaming drops in attendance on fans that didn't come prior to those drops? Seems like he's targetting the wrong people. You don't win new customers by telling them they suck.

Why are we still going back and forth on this.

Everyone from fans to staff to corporate entities to agents to players to Bettman to BoG want Melnyk gone. Nobody wants him here.

At the same time this market will be a challenge for any owner and front office. Things have to go perfect to make it work financially.

The market is a reality no blame to be assigned. Melnyk is to blame for the terrible PR but honestly the El Cheapo and constant whining about something we can’t control is exhausting.

We will be a floor team for the next few years, then money will be spent for a few years on payroll with bare bones everywhere else for a few years and then this cycle will restart. Acceptance is the least painful way to deal with it.

 

[Micklebot]

Why are we still going back and forth on this.

Everyone from fans to staff to corporate entities to agents to players to Bettman to BoG want Melnyk gone. Nobody wants him here.

At the same time this market will be a challenge for any owner and front office. Things have to go perfect to make it work financially.

The market is a reality no blame to be assigned. Melnyk is to blame for the terrible PR but honestly the El Cheapo and constant whining about something we can’t control is exhausting.

We will be a floor team for the next few years, then money will be spent for a few years on payroll with bare bones everywhere else for a few years and then this cycle will restart. Acceptance is the least painful way to deal with it.

The league is moving away from being gate driven. It will take some time, but the new national tv contract and the potential of centrally generated gambling revenues will go a long way to even the field imo.

 

[branch]

The team still being in Kanata is still a huge problem. You would probably see a 30% increase in gate revenues simply by moving it downtown. Buuuuuuuut we can't have nice things.

 

[BankStreetParade]

The team still being in Kanata is still a huge problem. You would probably see a 30% increase in gate revenues simply by moving it downtown. Buuuuuuuut we can't have nice things.

Spend $500+ million to make an extra $9 million a year...

 

[branch]

Spend $500+ million to make an extra $9 million a year...

Well that's an extremely simplified way of looking at building real estate on one of the most valuable pieces of property in the entire country, but not terribly surprised by this comment. Carry on, surely this comment is enough stand on its own merits.