OTTAWA — For years, Ottawa Senators fans clamoured for an owner who invested in their team and community.
In less than three years at the helm, Michael Andlauer has done just that.
Andlauer has spent to the cap (for now), turned a once-lifeless arena project in LeBreton Flats into a real possibility, paid $1 million of his own money to get back a 2026 first-round pick and has invested not only in the Ottawa community but also in neighbouring French-speaking Gatineau.
If you were to grade his tenure compared to his late predecessor, it would be an A.
But now is the real test to be “best in class,” a mantra Andlauer bestowed upon his new team when he bought it in 2023.
The finances of the NHL are changing, with a skyrocketing salary cap headed toward $104 million next season and $113.5 million in two years.
The cap was just $83.5 million in 2023-24, when Andlauer took over ownership, which is a drastic change for a small-market team that is consistently in the bottom five to 10 in the NHL in revenue.
With the Senators in win-now mode with Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle and Jake Sanderson, they have the potential to be a real playoff contender next season. Ottawa can ill-afford to be “cheap” if Senators fans are going to get what they want: a truly competitive team.
So, when Andlauer said on Friday that he was prepared to spend to the cap this season, it was promising news.
“It’s difficult, but this is a passion of mine. And this year we spent cash over cap, (which) was higher, so whatever it’s going to take to bring a Cup to Ottawa,” said Andlauer during a media conference at the Canadian Golf and Country Club.
It’s a big statement in this market for an owner to be willing to lose money to make sure the Senators are a better team.
Having said that, don’t expect the Senators to be big players in free agency.
“People will overpay (in free agency), but I think that probably there’s going to be a lot of things going on, because there’s not enough free agents,” said Andlauer. “I think people are going to want to do trades and all, and the fact that the cap is going up, I think there’s going to be people going to look at that as an opportunity.”
Bad contracts kill you in the NHL, and it’s prudent for the Senators to be smart in free agency.
All signs point to this summer being trade season; it helps when you have more assets at your disposal.
“We’re staying the course, and it’s nothing urgent, but also I think there’s areas that (general manager Steve Staios) wants to improve on,” said Andlauer about the team’s off-season plans.
Andlauer and Staios went full-court press on NHL commissioner Gary Bettman to get back the Sens’ 2026 first-round pick that was initially lost due to a botched Evgeni Dadonov trade in 2021, which led to Andlauer paying $1 million out of his own pocket to regain the 32nd-overall pick in this summer’s draft.
You could say Andlauer is invested in the Senators, literally and figuratively.
The owner has invested in the Gatineau community by sponsoring youth hockey teams, and on Friday, Andlauer announced the Senators will hold a rookie tournament at the Slush Puppy Centre this fall. The Senators have also welcomed the Ottawa Charge to the Canadian Tire Centre for their playoffs, and the Charge are likely to move there permanently next season.
There have also been rumours that Andlauer may buy the Gatineau Olympiques. On Friday, he stated in French that he misses owning a junior hockey team. Andlauer owned the Hamilton Bulldogs from 2003 to 2025.
But maybe the biggest investment Andlauer will be called on to make as Senators owner is financing a new arena in LeBreton Flats. “We’ve spent millions of dollars on this,” he said Friday.
“I remember when … we first did the deal with the (National Capital Commission), I was all excited, and I thought, Oh gosh, maybe three years, four years. It’s going to take a while, but you’ve got only one chance to do it right.”
The Senators are working closely with the Algonquin Anishinabe Nation on an economic partnership to smooth the path to a new arena on the LeBreton Flats site.
Andlauer did not rule out public funding for the arena — a touchy subject in an era of austerity in government. Governments aren’t rushing to spend money on hockey rinks.
“We’re keeping the government apprised,” he said. “There hasn’t been an ask (for financing the arena). It’s just letting them know what we’re doing, and understanding if there’s collaboration there, then so be it, whether it be in the city or the province or the federal government. We’re not even at that stage yet.”
When asked if the arena project, which includes a business and housing district, would be privately funded, the owner deftly skirted the questions.
“Not just an arena, it’s a whole development,” he said. “(When) you’re talking about the arena, actually, in my opinion, it’s going to be a small part of the whole development. We’ll try to do something special here.”
A downtown arena likely will be Andlauer’s legacy in Ottawa. The problem that remains to be solved and is the biggest sticking point in finally having a central arena for the Senators is: Who’s paying for it?
Andlauer may be a billionaire, but he is still unlikely to foot a bill alone.
The owner believes a new downtown arena will allow the Senators to spend more.
“When you asked me about the cap, to me it’s a passion, to me it’s about sustainability, it’s about being around, I’ve always run my businesses in a way that, where I’ve, don’t look at next quarter’s financial results, or it’s about what are we going to be in the next five years,” said Andlauer.
“I look at it from that standpoint, what’s going to make Ottawa able to continue to have an NHL team, and be proud of it, and have 100-plus million-dollar US payroll, and pay our fair share of taxes to all the governments,” said Andlauer.
Ultimately, the Senators’ owner is spending on his team and the franchise’s future. The question is, will that continue, and can he get the job done on and off the ice?