(Ottawa Senators President of Business Operations Anthony LeBlanc)
The message from Ottawa Senators President of Business Operations Anthony LeBlanc was simple.
“We’re back.”
The last time the Belleville Senators played an American Hockey League game at the CAA Arena was March 7, 2020. Five days later the AHL shut down operations as COVID-19 took over the world.
On October 16, 2021, the B-Sens will once again entertain on CAA ice when they host the Laval Rocket in the first of 36 games in the home they had to leave last season while playing “home” games in Ottawa’s Canadian Tire Centre.
Before that happens there is a lot of work to be done by both the business people and hockey people.
LeBlanc says the B-Sens won’t be starting from scratch however they will be hiring about six people to bring their business staff complement back to its pre-pandemic level.
LeBlanc says there will be fans in the building and believes there is a pent-up demand for people getting back to live events, particularly hockey. Under the province’s Phase 3 reopening guidelines, about 1000 fans would be allowed. However he cites Ontario’s successful vaccination program and hopes by October building capacity will increase substantially.
Recently Rob Mulowney left his position as the B-Sens Chief Operating Officer to accept a similar position with the Vancouver Canucks’ new AHL affiliate in Abbotsford BC. LeBlanc says there is a good crop of candidates for the position and he expects interviews to begin very soon.
Details regarding open positions with the B-Sens can be found at bellevillesenators.com.
