COLORADO SPRINGS — Dressed in an Ottawa Senators track suit after a morning workout, Michael Andlauer chuckled at the first question he was asked Monday.
It was at the same event a year ago, the NHL Board of Governors meeting, that the Senators owner kicked over a hornets’ nest when he talked about “soft tampering” and the New York Rangers when it came to his team’s captain, Brady Tkachuk. The NHL head office, for one, wasn’t terribly pleased.
All kidding aside, though, there hasn’t been any kind of Brady Tkachuk speculation since.
“I just speak from the hip,” Andlauer said with a smile Monday. “I should think before I say something. All I wanted to do is express how I care about my players. Simple as that. I always look at it from the vantage point of the person saying it but also the person hearing it. And when our players hear these things, and everybody is on social media, they’ll question it.
“I’ve always thought that you are the ears and eyes of our fans. What they see, what they hear from you, they take from it. So it’s important that the message and the narrative is done right. I look for transparency, but I also want to protect our players.”
The Senators finally making the playoffs last spring probably played a part in quieting that Tkachuk speculation, as well. The reason some teams wondered about his future was that they figured he’d be frustrated playing on a team that couldn’t get over the playoff hump.
“I’ve never seen any body language from Brady Tkachuk suggesting that he wasn’t happy about being in Ottawa,” Andlauer said. “I see him off the ice and what he does in the community. He’s just such a competitor. That’s what you want. He’s ‘A’ type. He wears it on his sleeve, like a lot of our great players do. They care. So ultimately, when you’re not winning, you wear that on your sleeve, too.
“He cares, and it’s shown on and off the ice.”
The Senators were able to hang in there this season when Tkachuk was out six weeks. That might have been the kind of injury that sunk a younger Sens team in the past, but this version was able to survive it.
“I think that’s a reflection of the maturity of our hockey club,” Andlauer said. “For the longest time, we were the youngest hockey club in the league. You don’t get trust; you earn it. They trust each other. The core group has been together a while. We’re in the second year under the helm of (coach) Travis Green. The culture that we’ve tried to establish, that’s led by (general manager) Steve Staios — there’s a ‘care’ factor. You combine all those things together, you win as a team. They played as a team (with Tkachuk out) and they played the right way.
“And let’s face it, this year (with the compressed Olympic schedule), I don’t know that there’s going to be a full lineup on any team any time. Buckle up and let’s get ready.’’
The Sens’ ascent has also come with a renewal of their rivalry with the Montreal Canadiens. That has an added element with Andlauer’s relationship with Habs owner Geoff Molson, dating to their years together in Montreal when the Sens owner had a stake in the Canadiens.
There remains a friendship between the two owners, but don’t underestimate how real the rivalry is.
“I am trying to build a rivalry,” Andlauer said, smiling. “Rivalries are good for hockey.”
He also pointed out that the Ottawa region is bilingual and that there might be Canadiens fans to be won over. He feels the Senators have historically not done a good enough job reaching out to hockey fans in the Gatineau and Outaouais region on the other side of the river in western Quebec, some of whom still cheer for the Habs.
“It’s an opportunity to help build hockey in that area and continue to do it and create an environment that was similar in the ’90s, when the Quebec Nordiques were around,” Andlauer said.
He wants that kind of passion in the Senators-Canadiens rivalry.
“Obviously, I have the utmost respect for Geoff and the Montreal Canadiens organization,” he added. “A lot of the best practices I try to implement in Ottawa, I learned in Montreal. But at the end of the day, when the puck drops, I hate Montreal.”
He delivered that last part with a hearty laugh. But you also know he means it.
“But once the game is over, it’s arguably one of the best franchises in sport,” he said.
Molson smiled when told of those comments.
“We’re good friends, and we’ve known each other for 17 years now,” Molson said. “We bought the (Canadiens) together, went through a lot together. So that hasn’t changed. And for sure, it’s always been a good rivalry, and it’s two up-and-coming teams that are young and talented and are right down the street from each other, so it makes for a good rivalry.”
And his response to Ottawa’s ambitions with current Canadiens fans?
“Yeah, well, it’s in his market,’’ Molson said. “The fans in his market are all important, whether they’re in Outaouais or Ottawa. So I don’t blame him.”
A major priority for Andlauer continues to be building a new arena in LeBreton Flats, closer to downtown Ottawa, but it’s a complicated, layered project that includes much more than a rink. It’s a major redevelopment that would involve hotels, restaurants, shops and condos. And it’s going to be years in the making.
But it would be a total game-changer for the Senators.
“I’m so excited to be a catalyst of this,” Andlauer said. “It’s only been two years and three months that I’ve been the owner of this hockey club. But understanding Ottawa more now, I love the city, and I love what LeBreton could represent for Ottawa and Gatineau since it’s just across the river. From the revitalization and urban-renewal initiatives that are required, the economic impetus that it can do for the area … there’s so many boxes that get checked by this initiative.’’
Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia in Ottawa reported Monday that the Senators are lobbying the provincial and federal governments to help finance the new arena. That probably isn’t surprising given the magnitude of the project. But it’s a delicate balance when it comes to taxpayer funding.
Asked about the report, Andlauer responded: “Too premature in the process to say. My discussions have been with the (National Capital Commission) and the city only.”
Again, there are many layers to this project to figure out before it sees the light of day.
“But we’re making progress,” Andlauer said. “We have a development committee, and we meet regularly. We have timelines that we need to meet. So I’m excited about it. The timeline is to be determined still, but we’re moving forward.”
The new arena would be a game-changer for a franchise that has historically struggled to consistently generate the kind of revenue needed for long-term viability.
That doesn’t mean there won’t be controversy with the arena plans, especially when it comes to taxpayer money potentially being involved. But the Sens feel they dearly need that new arena.
Regardless of how that plays out, you know Andlauer will be as passionate about it as he is about his hockey team. In an era where more and more faceless private equity groups are gobbling up sports teams, Andlauer is a throwback owner — his emotional tie-in to the Senators apparent.
Even if it gets him in trouble sometimes with a comment or two.