voyageur
Hockey fanatic
- Jul 10, 2011
- 9,477
- 8,173
Ottawa DOES have access to all of Quebec and Atlantic Canada with their regional deal with Bell. Ottawa and Montreal share the same regional footprint.
But Ottawa's following is mostly limited to the Ottawa valley, Northern Ontario. They are not an anti-Montreal franchise. More like the Islanders to the Rangers. There are still a good many Habs fans in Ottawa. Quebec is a rival, in market, in stature and culture, and would represent a real rivalry for the Canadiens, and their brand in the province. But I still think for reasons I mentioned before about economic instability, that Ottawa is the preferred market of the NHL.