Gabriel Pizza Gameday Build-Up: Fur set to fly at CAA Arena for Belleville Sens annual Teddy Bear Toss

Saturday, December 13, 2025 vs Cleveland Monsters (NHL Affiliate: Columbus Blue Jackets)

The set-up:

The weather outside is frightful, but it should be a delightful evening inside CAA Arena as the Belleville Senators welcome the Cleveland Monsters for the annual Teddy Bear Boss. With just four more games until the Holiday Break, the Senators are looking to pick up the pace and capitalize against a Monsters team that sits two spots behind them in the North Division standings, but only by two points. The Monsters roll into the Friendly City having won three of their last four games, including a split with the Charlotte Checkers on the road last weekend. Tonight’s game is the seventh of Belleville’s current eight-game home stand, while it’s matchup number three of a four-game trip for the Monsters.

Previous History:

Despite being divisional rivals, the Senators and Monsters face off only a few times a season, with tonight’s game the first of four in 2025-26. Recent meetings between the two teams have been tightly contested. The Sens were 2-2-0-0 against the Monsters last season, with three of those games all ending by 2-1 scores. Not including their four-game playoff series in 2023-24, Belleville has a lifetime record of 14-16-0-2 against Cleveland, with a 7-7-0-2 mark at home.

Roster Notes:

The Sens will be without one of their hottest offensive threats tonight after Olle Lycksell was recalled to Ottawa this morning. The 26-year-old Swede has points in five of seven games with Belleville since returning from his last National Hockey League call-up, including a goal in Wednesday’s loss to Rochester. Power forward Hayden Hodgson will also be out of the lineup for the next three games, after being suspended yesterday by the American Hockey League, for actions at the end of the game on Wednesday night. He’s eligible to return next Saturday, December 20, in Toronto. Belleville’s injured players have all began skating  as they continue their respective rehabs, but Belleville is still expected to be without goaltender Hunter Shepard, rookie defenceman Matt Andonovski and forward Tyler Boucher tonight. Full roster and lineup details will be available closer to puck drop on the Sens social channels (@BellevilleSens).

Who to Watch:

Rookie blueliner Carter Yakemchuk notched another assist on Wednesday, putting him second in that category among first-year players with 17. Arthur Kaliyev also had an assist on Wednesday and is still among the AHL’s top point collectors with 25, six behind league leader Laurent Dauphin of Laval. Kaliyev is also three tallies off the AHL goal scoring lead as well, but still leads the AHL in power play goals (9) and shots on goal (93). Forward Phil Daoust is right behind Kaliyev on the league scoring ladder with 23 points.

The Monsters have a couple of players worth keying in on tonight, including rookie Luca Pinelli, who has 15 points in 17 games for Cleveland so far in his first full pro season. The Columbus Blue Jackets selected the former Ottawa 67’s captain in the fourth round of the NHL Draft in 2023 and have also called him up for three games in 2025/26. Third-year pro Luca Del Bel Belluz is also back from Columbus, where he collected one assist in 11 games for the Blue Jackets so far this season. In 11 AHL games with Cleveland, Del Bel Belluz has five goals and six assists.

At the Rink:

It’s the first of two games on Holiday Celebration Weekend, which begins with the annual Teddy Bear Toss. Fans are set to litter the ice with new stuffed toys once the Senators score their first goal of the game, with those fluffy friends being collected and donated to the Belleville Firefighters Toy Drive. Belleville has consistently scored the teddy toss goal in the first period, with Angus Crookshank counting last season’s at 10:07 of the opening frame against Rochester. Fans are also encouraged to bring non-perishable food items to donate to the Gleaner’s Food Bank and Tri-County Food Warehouse, outside Gates 1, 2, and 3. And if you’re looking to complete more of your holiday shopping, the Locker Room Store and Gate 2 merchandise stand have plenty of gear to choose from, including brand-new, limited-edition Belleville Sens x Rien À Dire t-shirts, which drop in-store and in-arena today.

Follow the Action:

Puck drop tonight is set for 7:00 p.m. ET from CAA Arena in Belleville, Ontario. Broadcast coverage begins at 6:50 ET with David Foot and Brock Ormond and is available on AHLTV via FloHockey or free to listen on the Belleville Sens Entertainment Network.

Ticket Info:

Tickets for all Belleville Sens 2025-26 home games are now on sale via Ticketmaster or at the Belleville Sens Box Office located inside the Quinte Sports & Wellness Centre. Details on season seat memberships, flex packs, premium seating, the Business Edge Program, and more can be found by visiting the Belleville Sens Website. 

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