Matt Weinstein

mweinste@gannett.com

Are the Ottawa Senators considering a move out of Binghamton for their American Hockey League affiliate?

Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun reports Ottawa is happy with its agreement with Binghamton and have no problem staying in the Southern Tier, but is still mulling a move to Belleville, Ontario, to play in the Yarman Arena to start the 2017-18 season. Ottawa, which has an affiliation agreement with Binghamton that runs through the 2018-19 season, would try to find a replacement for Binghamton if they did move, Garrioch writes.

The potential move would put the Ottawa farm team closer to its NHL city – Belleville is 143 miles from Ottawa while Binghamton is 271 miles away – and expand Ottawa's presence in Canada. The AHL considers Binghamton a valuable market and it's very possible another NHL team could move their affiliate to the city if Ottawa did not secure a replacement.

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The Senators did not comment for the story. Belleville mayor Taso Christopher indicated the city is in negotiations to bring hockey back to the Yarman Arena after its Ontario Hockey League team left for Hamilton in 2015, but cannot disclose any more information. The Belleville Intelligencer reported in January the city approved a a $450,000 payment to an architect to draw up plans for an arena renovation. The city would then need to approve millions more for the actual upgrades.

Garrioch says the belief is Ottawa would not consider a move anywhere else. If the team did move, a group would have to buy the Binghamton franchise. The AHL Board of Governors would also have to approve any move.

The deal seems is very complicated with many moving parts. Is it enough to cause worry for B-Sens fans? Possibly, but Ottawa seems intent on helping Binghamton as much as it can if the team were to move AHL affiliations.

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