B-Sens bus trips already filling up before team makes it to the city

Poster for the upcoming Binghamton Senators vs. Toronto Marlies bus trip.

By Casey Horn

BELLEVILLE – The anthem hasn’t been sung, the new paint hasn’t even finished drying, but that isn’t stopping Belleville Senators fans from cheering on their new team.

A bus trip is planned for Family Day on Feb. 20 to watch the Binghamton Senators play the Toronto Marlies at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto.

“Currently we’ve sold out two full buses and the third bus is almost full. We’ve probably sold in the neighbourhood of 200 tickets between those on the buses and people choosing to drive on their own,” said Gina Giouroukos-Hannah, one of the organizers of the trip.

Giouroukos-Hannah and fellow organizer, Ellie Guenette, are members of the Belleville Senators Fan Club.

They are a group of fans who used to organize trips to watch the Belleville Bulls play their road games. Now they are gearing up to support the Senators when they open their season here in October.

Giouroukos-Hannah says they’ve already seen a ton of support.

“We’re actually pleasantly surprised at the extent of the support we’ve seen. I think the announcement at the end of last year that a new team would be coming here has got everyone sort of chomping at the bit.”

She said some people do still miss the Bulls, but that they’re also excited to get to see professional hockey players.

“We’re going to be seeing players moving into and out of the NHL, and it’s a much faster style of game. It’s going to be great.”

Fans from as far away and as Kingston and Madoc along with Picton and Tweed will board the bus at the Quinte Sports and Wellness Centre at 11:30 and then head west where they will make a stop in Brighton and then in Wooler before making their way to downtown Toronto. Puck drop is 3 p.m.