New Senators owner Andlauer determined to bring Stanley Cup back to Ottawa

If I could sum up the reaction of fans and the broader community to the new owner of the Ottawa Senators, it might be this:

“Michael Andlauer, where have you been all our lives?”

Andlauer, 57, has been saying and doing all the right things since being tentatively approved as the team’s new majority owner this summer. And since getting the official blessing of the NHL on Thursday night, Andlauer has stepped up his game another notch.

“This team truly belongs to Ottawa-Gatineau,” Andlauer wrote in a statement to fans on the Senators website Thursday. “I promise to take care of your team with the utmost respect, integrity and care.”

Wow. He had us at, “This team truly belongs to Ottawa-Gatineau.”

At the welcoming press conference on Friday morning at the Canadian Tire Centre, Andlauer and his infant reign soared to new heights. Gate 1, the main entrance to the rink, was full to the brim under bright TV lights, with natural sunlight pouring through the glass entranceway. Guests spilled up the stairs for a bird’s-eye of the proceedings below.

The event concluded with a champagne toast to the new owner and this 31-year-old franchise, the closing moment of an ownership launch that wasn’t merely a home run, it was a walk-off, bases-clearing grand slam.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman was there to add a level of gravitas from the league office, rightly saying there has never been more optimism around the Senators, on and off the ice.

Cyril Leeder, a co-founder of the Senators franchise, was welcomed back as the CEO and club president, titles he knows intimately from a previous life.

Popular chief financial officer Erin Crowe was saluted and given an added title – chief operating officer of the Senators.

George Armoyan Sr. will serve as the team’s first alternate governor and chair of the development committee.

As for Andlauer, at times pausing to gather himself and stave off tears, he was so authentic, it was inspirational. You could tell he hasn’t done this kind of big stage conference before – early on he wrestled for the right words, but the right words came. More importantly, he hit all the right notes.

“I’m faced with so many emotions,” Andlauer said, taking the microphone after Bettman spoke. “It reminds me of my wedding day. I’m excited, overwhelmed a little bit, nervous. But I’m happy – happy knowing I’m in good company.”

Now that he’s been successfully married for 27 years, he said he knows these emotions are appropriate and perhaps an omen.

“Today, my family and I are really excited to officially become part of this community and part of the best fan base in the NHL,” Andlauer said.

He joked that his wife, Lucie, will be glad to clear out all the old Habs gear out of the closet, now that Andlauer is no longer a part of the Montreal Canadiens ownership. To be replaced by Sens gear, no doubt.

And he jokingly apologized to his three children, Mathew, Michael Jr. and Alexie, for “spending their inheritance on my passion.”

We’re guessing that, in reality, that will turn out OK. Consider how it worked for Anna and Maria Melnyk, daughters of late owner Eugene Melnyk. The young Melnyk women will remain minority partners of the Senators, using a small part of their inheritance.

Other minority partnerships will become clearer over time. Some do not wish to be publicly known. Others do.

Calling himself a “players-first owner,” Andlauer said he sees himself as an underdog, much as the Senators and their fan base view their beloved hockey club.

Andlauer spoke of being “raised by a single mom on the other side of the tracks in Montreal.”

As a boy, he taped No. 10 on his Habs sweater for Guy Lafleur, wearing it at the local outdoor rink, dreaming of a future in the NHL, though not likely as an owner. Funny how things turn out. As a grown man, Andlauer was instrumental in making sure Lafleur remained on the Habs payroll for life, just one indication of how things just got a whole lot better for player alumni in Ottawa.

Former captain Daniel Alfredsson nodded in agreement with me on this, and said he looks forward to being a part of the organization again. He won’t yet say in what capacity.

“We’ll talk,” Alfredsson said, concerning Andlauer. “Today, I’m just here to support Michael.”

What a classy gesture by Alfie, to be present but decline TV interviews because he didn’t want to rain on Michael Andlauer’s sunny parade.

More on the underdog file …

“I paid for my own university (studies) and started my own trucking business,” Andlauer said. “And, well, a lot of people didn’t think I was going to be successful. So, I’ve always taken that (as motivation).

“In Hamilton, hockey didn’t do well. And we’ve had 20 years of hockey in Hamilton (OHL and AHL).

“I’ve always thought of Ottawa as a small market, and I like that. It makes us work harder and be more determined, more passionate. I really feel we have the right recipe.”

With Andlauer’s people skills, and by tapping into the knowledge of several minority partners, including Jeff York of Farm Boy and the Malholtra family of Claridge Homes, Andlauer believes he can create a winning culture in Ottawa, on and off the ice.

“Together, we can make the city proud,” he said. “Let’s bring the Stanley Cup back to Ottawa.”

It was last here in 1927, on the tail end of the earliest incarnation of NHL hockey in Ottawa with the Silver Seven and Senators.

One of Andlauer’s first priorities, and that of Leeder, will be plans for a new arena closer to downtown. Andlauer has met with NCC officials about the possibility of building a rink on LeBreton Flats, and the new owner called it one of the prime pieces of real estate on the continent. But he noted other options, including some empty federal government buildings.

Leeder and Andlauer both said the end location will be determined by what fans want.

Or “through the lens of the fan,” as Leeder termed it.

As for a timeline, Andlauer dryly noted that the realtors in his group believe it could be done in five years, but getting governments to move that fast will be another story. It could be more than five years before the new arena gets built, meaning at least five more years in Kanata.

Although he has been based in southern Ontario, Andlauer has rented a home in the Ottawa neighbourhood of Westboro and plans to spend a lot of time in the city, and will likely get to “four out of five” home games.

Andlauer made his money in the trucking and medical businesses. He is the founder and CEO of the Andlauer Healthcare Group, which operates health-care supply companies. Andlauer also runs Bulldog Capital Partners out of Toronto.

He has been a long-time partner in the NHL Canadiens, and has divested himself of that minority ownership. Fans of junior and pro hockey have known Andlauer for his ownership of OHL and AHL franchises in Hamilton, Ont. He still owns the OHL’s Bulldogs — now playing in Brantford, Ont. — and while buying the Ottawa Senators he also purchased the AHL affiliate in Belleville.

As the formal events ended, Andlauer in his new Senators sweater shook hands with as many people as possible, gliding into his first full day of getting down to the business of running an NHL franchise.