From Carleton Place to the U.K. and Back Again
Ottawa has produced some of the most passionate hockey fans in the NHL, and Harrison Dowling might just be the most unlikely one. Based in the United Kingdom, Dowling has been a diehard Ottawa Senators supporter since 2010 — a loyalty forged not in the Glebe or Barrhaven, but at a live game he attended with family members who live in Carleton Place, just west of the capital.
For most tourists, a single hockey game is a novelty. For Dowling, it was a turning point.
A Game That Changed Everything
"I just fell in love with it," Dowling told CBC Ottawa's Rachelle Elsiufi. What started as a family outing to Canadian Tire Centre turned into a years-long commitment to following a team six time zones away.
Being a Senators fan in the U.K. is no small feat. Game times are brutal — most Ottawa home games tip off at 7:30 p.m. ET, which puts puck drop somewhere around 12:30 a.m. in the U.K. Playoff games push even later. But Dowling makes it work, staying up well past midnight to watch his team battle it out on the ice.
He keeps tabs on every trade, follows the prospects, and has built a genuine connection to a city he doesn't call home but clearly loves.
Long-Distance Loyalty Is Its Own Kind of Dedication
There's something uniquely Ottawa about this story. The Senators have had their share of ups and downs over the past decade — rebuilds, roster overhauls, and plenty of late-season heartbreak. Sticking with the team through all of that is hard enough when you're local. Doing it from across an ocean, with no local sports bars showing the game and no one at the office to talk hockey with the next morning, takes a different kind of devotion.
Downing represents a quiet but real global fanbase the Senators have cultivated — people who discovered Ottawa hockey through travel, through family, or simply through fate, and never let go.
The Ottawa Connection Runs Deep
His Carleton Place ties keep him grounded to the Ottawa Valley community. The small town, known for its own passionate hockey culture and proximity to Ottawa, gave Dowling his first taste of what it means to be part of this region's identity. Hockey isn't just a sport here — it's a shared language.
With the Senators trending upward and a young, exciting roster building real momentum, it's a good time to be a fan — whether you're watching from Kanata or from a living room in the U.K. at 1 a.m.
Downing's story is a reminder that the Ottawa Senators, for all their small-market reputation, have the kind of heart that travels well.
Source: CBC Ottawa / Watch the full interview
