Ottawa Senators

Source: Exec Digital Canada

Date :1/17/2008 4:10:32 AM

Cyril Leeder, chief operating officer (COO) of the Ottawa Senators, talks openly about the team’s remarkable emergence as Stanley Cup contenders

Written by Ian Armitage and produced by Jason Wright

Member of the Northeast Division of the NHL’s Eastern Conference, Ottawa Senators, who play their home games at the 19,153 capacity Scotiabank Place, are the current Eastern Conference champions, holders of the Prince of Wales Trophy and runners-up in the 2007 Stanley Cup finals.

After reaching their first finals in 80 years, the Senators missed out, losing to the Anaheim Ducks four games to one. Despite this setback, the team has returned this season stronger than ever, determined to go one better and bring the trophy back to Ottawa.

Last season’s head coach Bryan Murray has moved up to general manager and assistant coach John Paddock assumed head coaching responsibilities. Both know the system well and this, coupled with a strong squad of players, makes the team from Canada’s capital city the one to beat in the Eastern Conference.

Fears of a Stanley Cup finals hangover have been quickly put to rest this term - the Senators have won 16 of 21 games so far this season and top the Northeast Division. “We have an elite team, which is only going to get better,” explains Cyril Leeder. They are realistic contenders for hockey’s ultimate prize.

Tying several young, highly talented hockey stars to long term contracts, the Senators will continue to bring top-class hockey to Canada’s capital for the foreseeable future – much to the delight of the hockey-crazed locals.

Cup tradition

Founded and established by Ottawa real estate developer Bruce Firestone, the team as we know it today is the namesake of the original Ottawa Senators hockey club, which won eleven Stanley Cups and played in the NHL until 1934. An expansion franchise was awarded on December 6, 1990, after a public campaign to return the NHL to Ottawa. The club began regular season play in 1992-93.

Leeder was instrumental in writing the key document and in presenting that document to the NHL’s Board of Governors that led to the successful return of the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club in 1990 after a nearly 60 year absence. He says: “It gives me huge satisfaction to have played a part in bringing the Senators back to the NHL. Since then, I have witnessed every triumph and disappointment, so the day we hoist the Stanley Cup will be a very special one.”

The puck stops here

Both on and off the ice, the Senators have been through it all. Off the ice, the team has had two changes of ownership, from Mr. Firestone to Rod Bryden, due to the arena development process and its financing, and then to Eugene Melnyk, after the team filed for bankruptcy in 2003. On the ice, the club placed last in the league for its first four seasons, before changes in hockey management led to a steady improvement in the club’s placing, and a streak of ten straight qualifications for the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Today the club is one of the most successful in the league, featuring several top star players, consistently high placings and is one of the top teams in average attendance.

“We have been through a lot,” adds Leeder. “Although we have emerged as Stanley Cup contenders and have improved vastly on and off the ice, we will not be satisfied until we bring the Cup home.”

Leeder was promoted to Chief Operating Officer (COO) of both the Ottawa Senators and Scotiabank Place in August of 2002 (he has been COO of Scotiabank since 1998 however). As COO of the Senators and Scotiabank Place, he is charged with managing the day-to-day operations of the team and building, including responsibility for revenues and expenses. From 1992 to ’98, he also served as president of Palladium Corporation, which is the entity that developed and built Scotiabank Place.

Putting Ottawa on the hockey map

With a passion for the game of hockey that is second to none, Leeder has been with the Senators since day one and witnessed every high and low along the way. Few team executives in the NHL have served with the degree of commitment Leeder has demonstrated and nobody knows the Senators better than him.

Forming a fan culture, which builds on Ottawa’s tradition and recent successes, the Senators regularly fill Scotibank Place. Yet, despite some of the highest attendances in the league, the Senators must not lose sight of the importance of staying in touch with the fans and local community. “It's vital to stay close to the fanbase. We can't sit back and be relaxed. Although we are an exciting team, we haven’t won the Stanley Cup for 80 years. We've always got to do more and as long as people see us trying to do things the right way, being open and honest, they'll stay with us.”

Ice hockey has a niche following, therefore the Ottawa Senators aim to be the best in sports entertainment, creating a superior fan experience.

The Senators are also active in the community. The club is the second largest contributor to local charities and is extremely active in minor hockey - important if it is to create the ‘fans for life’ fanbase every hockey club needs. Leeder himself is the visionary and architect behind the world’s largest minor hockey tournament - the Bell Capital Cup.

He has chaired this prestigious event for nine years. Over 500 teams from around the world participate, bringing 8,000 hockey players into Ottawa. While there, the budding young hockey stars fill 33 hotels and bring $15 million to the local economy.

He was also instrumental in Ottawa being awarded such notable events as the Junos and the NHL Entry Draft,the 2009 World Junior Hockey Championships and the Men’s University Basketball Championships (2008-2010).

Great managers make great teams

Success off the ice is dependent on success on it, and vice-versa. For this reason, Leeder stresses the importance of getting “good hockey management people”, such as Bryan Murray and John Paddock. Great managers break every rule perceived as “conventional wisdom,” when dealing with the selection, motivation, and development of players. This makes them a rarity.

“You’re nothing if you aren’t successful on the ice. You need to get the right managers. They are able to deal with selection, motivation and development of players. Hockey is a very complex game, and a vast knowledge of it is essential if you are to create winning teams. There are many intricacies to this game, and understanding them all requires experience and craft, particularly in the modern game.”

Significantly, players must also have a desire to play in Ottawa. “We are one of the few teams that can say they have their top six young players signed up to long term contracts. The players are treated extremely well here. They are part of our community. And they also like being part of a winning atmosphere. I think these factors have been vital to our success and ability to retain the best players. They might get a little bit more money somewhere else, but they are committed to playing here in Ottawa.”

Other ‘on ice’ challenges include wage caps, already affecting the team’s chances of re-signing young defenceman, Andrej Meszaros. The physicality of the sport, on top of a heavy fixture list, presents another difficulty. Off the ice, the league is continuing to grow and the Senators need to find ways of growing with it.

“We are forever trying for continuous improvement throughout the entire organization,” says Leeder. “That is always a challenge, especially when you have a good season like we did last year. When that happens it is hard to go back to managers and say ‘well, that was our best year ever, now go do better’.”

The ability to provide a full entertainment experience will play an important part in the Senators’ growth, and future. Average tickets market at around $85 and modern fans are demanding more than great hockey – they want the full customer experience.

The Senators have to deliver, and get people into the spirit of the game. “We do a lot of research with our fans. We talk to them and we structure research. One of the areas we have really focused on over the last few years is our food and beverage offering, which next to the game itself, is the number one item that enhances the fan’s experience.

“We also have the largest parking lot in the city. Before the game that is a real plus because people can park close to the arena and just walk right up. But after the game it is an issue just getting all the cars off the site in an orderly fashion. That is another area that we continuously look at and try to improve on.”

New media

As ice hockey has a niche following, it also needs to be available through many mediums if it is to reach the full potential fan base. New media Sportscasting is increasingly seen as a vital part of the communications mix for all sports and it has particular benefits for minority sports.

“We are trying to do new things in the broadcast area, looking at a number of new media initiatives. A fan’s relationship with their favorite sport can be enhanced by new media. Through new media, hockey can have a much wider reach and we will be able to provide fans with the availability to watch games in a more comprehensive and flexible way.” This is the Senators second year of doing games on a pay-per-view basis.

Winning is better than losing

Since 1992, the Senators have seen it all – tremendous highs, and fantastic lows. Everyone involved with the club, especially Leeder, will tell you that winning is much better than losing. In fact, any sports fan will tell you they are worlds apart. Although the Senators were thrilled to reach the 2007 Stanley Cup finals, they were devastated to lose. This has fashioned a burning desire to do better this time out. “We know the ultimate goal is to win the Stanley Cup,” explains Leeder.

“The challenge for us as an organization is to win the Stanley Cup and bring it back to Ottawa. I really see my role as intricate to that. We have to run the business so that the hockey folks, the people who have a better knowledge of it, and are in charge of the on ice performance, are able to focus on that and the only thing they need to worry about is playing well and winning.”

The Senators have taken the Eastern Conference and NHL by storm. The team is on a fantastic winning streak and continues to improve.

“The on ice success stems from several things. First, it starts at the top. We have had great ownership. The owner has been fantastic. He has made the right decisions in terms of management, getting the right personnel. He has made tough decisions to make changes and at the same time he has held in and had some continuity even in some very difficult times. That has been good.

“Secondly, we have drafted the right young players, developing our own talent - we have done that as well as any other team in the league and that is very important.

“Third, I think we have the right chemistry. The players like each other. We also have the right balance of skilled players, tough players, defensive players and offensive players. It is just a good chemistry and a good team feeling. I think that those three things are vital to our success.”

Will the Senators be successful this term? Who can tell? Certainly, nobody can question their determination to win, both on an off the ice. No matter the outcome, hockey-crazy fans will continue to follow the Senators – simply because they don’t know what they would do without the game.