Chris Tanev and Drake Batherson (Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images) [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/2b5b4c8b-5f30-4b22-87a8-44e50f40c1cb.jpeg] Chris Tanev and Drake Batherson (Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images) The Ottawa Senators came up with a plan to limit a flood of Toronto Maple Leafs fans from attending the Canadian Tire Centre for Games 3, 4 and potentially 6 of their first-round series. When the Maple Leafs [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs] visit the Senators [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators], the crowd often features a lot of blue and white competing with Ottawa’s red and black. How many games will the series between the Maple Leafs and Senators last? The Senators organization took a step-by-step approach to selling tickets for the Battle of Ontario [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators/latest-news/ottawa-senators-vs-toronto-maple-leafs-when-will-the-2025-battle-of-ontario-begin] and limiting Leafs fans. Their strategy to maximize Sens fans is through season ticket holders and newsletter followers. Season ticket holders were able to purchase up to four tickets – two for them and two extra for other Sens fans. The Senators have an additional 902 season ticket holders from five weeks ago, team president Cyril Leeder told the Ottawa Citizen [https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/senators-protect-home-ice-ctc-maple-leafs]. The team also opened single-game ticket sales to subscribers to its newsletter on Thursday at 10 a.m. ET for two hours. That didn’t leave many single-game tickets available for the general public when sales opened at noon. “You won’t see much blue,” team owner Michael Andlauer told reporters [https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/as-battle-of-ontario-looms-sens-fans-get-ready-to-take-it-to-toronto-1.7511720] at a Senators flag-raising ceremony at city hall on Wednesday. This isn’t the first time that other teams have tried to limit Leafs fans from their rink. When Toronto faced the Florida Panthers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers] in the second round of the 2023 playoffs, the Panthers restricted ticket access [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/news/panthers-attempt-to-block-maple-leafs-fans-from-purchasing-tickets-to-playoff-home-games] to purchasers with a U.S.-based credit card billing address. The Senators and Maple Leafs faced off in the playoffs four times between 2000 and 2004. In 2004, the Leafs defeated the Sens in seven games. The Senators organization will not only hope to push out the blue-and-white noise but also win the latest edition of the Battle of Ontario. Game 1 takes place Sunday at 7 p.m. ET in Toronto. [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-playoffs-2025-first-round-schedule-dates-times-where-to-watch] Get the latest news and trending stories by following The Hockey News on Google News [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw?hl=en-CA&gl=CA&ceid=CA%3Aen] and by subscribing to The Hockey News newsletter here [http://eepurl.com/i7OC4I]. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com.
