With the Senators reaching their first Eastern Conference Finals in 10 years, the goal now is to "translate the team's current winning ways into future season ticket sales," according to Mike Zeisberger of the TORONTO SUN. Senators President & CEO Tom Anselmi considers that a "priority, one which became even more apparent by the empty seats" at Canadian Tire Centre during Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Rangers. Anselmi: "There are lots of hockey fans in Ottawa and I think they've proven they'll fill the building if you give them a reason. ... And they're doing that right now. So our job is to then take advantage of that and move the whole business forward." He added, "People ask me if that game was an aberration, a blip. It's no secret we need a bigger season ticket base. When your season ticket base isn't that big and you go from one round to another, bang, suddenly you have thousands of tickets you have to sell in a couple days. That's a formidable task." Anselmi is "quick to point out" that this is a "key calendar year" for the Senators. He said, "We have a lot of things going for us right now that we need to take advantage of. This run. We have training camp in [Prince Edward Island]. After that, we have regular season games in Sweden. We have an outdoor game in December. We have a lot of markers out there upon which to build." Anselmi: "We need to do a better job promoting the team and building the business behind the team. That's critical" (TORONTOSUN.com, 5/16).
