Your Senators fans are something else, eh?
### Why We Are Built Different
You know, sometimes I think the rest of the country doesn't quite *get* Ottawa. They see the Parliament buildings, maybe they visit the ByWard Market for a poutine, and they think they've got us figured out. But then you hear something like this — Senators fans, *in North Carolina*, after a 2-0 shutout loss, still feeling confident. *Confused, non?* It's not just optimism; it's a specific kind of Ottawa resilience, a belief that even when things look bleak, we're still in the game. That David Fraser even found them after that Game 1 clunker? That's dedication.
This isn't some fair-weather fandom you'd find in, say, Toronto where they only show up when the Maple Leafs are winning. This is deep-rooted, like the NCC Greenbelt itself — sprawling and sometimes a bit hard to navigate, but fundamentally there. These are the people who still talk about the 2007 Stanley Cup run like it was last week, who remember the glory days of Alfredsson and Spezza. They’ve seen enough ups and downs to know that one game, even a shutout, doesn't tell the whole story. You see it in the Glebe, in Hintonburg, even out in Kanata. People still wear their jerseys with pride, even after a tough night.
What this means for Ottawa:
* **Unshakeable Spirit:** Even when the Ottawa River is rising and the Sens get blanked, our core spirit remains. * **Community First:** This kind of shared experience, the collective *gasp* at a missed shot or the cheer for a good save, it binds us. * **The Long Game:** We’re not about instant gratification. We’re about the full season, the playoff push, the eventual triumph.
The real story is never on the Hill — it's always just off it, in the hearts of fans who travel all that way, just to watch their team lose, and still believe. That's Ottawa.
Simone Okafor-Bouchard, MiTL Sports Desk, signing off.
You know who else has this kind of unwavering belief? The crew on the Morning Wire. Catch them talking all things Ottawa, live at mornings.live.