Game #23: Ottawa Senators (April 4, 2015)
April 5, 2015
I was joined by my good friend Alex Beaudoin from Ottawa for my 23rd game, so this definitely added to the enjoyment level. We arrived at the Canadian Tire Centre early for the game (my usual practice), and as you can see by the below picture, the arena is out on its own, with a location outside of the Ottawa metropolitan area.
It may not be the most ideal location for an arena (especially for fans of downtown arenas), so for this reason, there’s been some recent discussion about building a new arena in the downtown core.
While the Canadian Tire Centre is not the most modern arena in the NHL, it’s still only 20 years old, and has more than enough seating capacity (19,961 seats) for an NHL team.
Before settling into our seats, we grabbed a bite to eat, and after learning that my good friend had never eaten a reuben before, this was our selection. It now ranks as one of my favourite foods eaten at a hockey game so far in my trip.
But as good as the food was, this is not why you go to a hockey game in Ottawa. The Senators are battling for a spot in the playoffs, so this game was a huge one for the team. And there’s nothing like being in a Canadian arena with playoff fever.
With the game about to start, the anthems were sung, and when the Canadian anthem was sung, it was the loudest I’ve heard any fans (Canada or U.S.) sing along with their anthem. With the anthem sung, the fans began the “Go Sens Go” chant, and before the ten minute mark of the first period, built up a 3-0 lead on the visiting Washington Capitals.
The Ottawa Senators made a very nice presentation to me just before the end of the second period. Included in their presentation were two Ottawa Senators jerseys, one with my name (and number 30 on the back), the other, a team signed Senators jersey. As much as I would treasure the team signed jersey (and I would), I will be donating this jersey to be auctioned off with proceeds going to Make-A-Wish. And the best part of the presentation – the Senators made a donation of $2,200.00 to Make-A-Wish, which is absolutely awesome!
In the second intermission, I caught one of the most entertaining intermission events – the battling Prime Ministers. It was hilarious to see these caricatures of past Prime Ministers duelling it out on the ice.
Getting back to the hockey game, the Capitals battled back to tie the score 3-3 in the third, but Kyle Turris scored a beauty in overtime to give the Senators a much needed win. Hurray for the Senators!
I would like to thank the Ottawa Senators for making my 23rd stop so special, and I would like to thank Chelsea from their PR department for her hospitality. And thanks to my friend Alex for joining me to this game – here’s a “selfie” with the two of us at the game.
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