Senators owner: Quebec City 'deserves' NHL team

Ottawa Senators owner Michael Andlauer believes Quebec City should get an NHL team. It just won't be the one he owns.

"Quebec deserves, in my opinion, an NHL team, but that will not be on my file," Andlauer said, according to Sportsnet. "In the future, I hope we can play a few regular-season games in Quebec City. If we can play in Sweden, we should be able to play in Quebec City. That's a decision the NHL must make."

The Senators announced Monday they will play two preseason games against the New Jersey Devils and Montreal Canadiens in Quebec City at the Videotron Centre in September.

The Los Angeles Kings played a pair of preseason games in Quebec City before the 2024-25 campaign. There hasn't been an NHL regular-season game in the city since the Quebec Nordiques relocated to Denver after the 1994-95 season.

The PWHL's Montreal Victoire hosted the Ottawa Charge at the Videotron Centre on Jan. 19 in front of a sold-out crowd of 18,259.

Andlauer has been trying to secure a new arena for the Senators in LeBreton Flats, and he says it's been a tough process dealing with the National Capital Commission.

"There were terms in our agreement that talked about fair market value, which I'm totally for and that's what I want - what's fair," Andlauer said. "Let's just hope the NCC doesn't change the rules at the last second."

Andlauer rejected the notion that relocating to Quebec City could be an option for the Senators if a deal for an arena continues to be an issue.

"No, because for me, I love Ottawa-Gatineau," Andlauer said. "I love our supporters. Despite the fact that we are 20 minutes from downtown in Kanata, we can continue to make it work, but it would be better to be downtown."