"Sergei Gonchar wanted to stay with the Pittsburgh Penguins, but the Ottawa Senators wanted him more.

"When you're in a city for five years and you win a Stanley Cup, and things are going well, it's hard to leave," Gonchar admitted Friday as he made the rounds at his new hockey home. "Up to the last minute, I was hoping I would get the deal done with Pittsburgh, but unfortunately it didn't work out and here I am in Ottawa."

The deal-breaker in Pittsburgh was the 36-year-old's defenceman's request for a third year on a contract, but the Senators were ready to oblige with what ultimately became a deal worth $16.5 million U.S. once free agency began on July 1.

"There were a few other teams, but, when we got a phone call from Ottawa, you could tell from the first second they really wanted me," Gonchar said.

Now that he's playing for a Canadian-based National Hockey League team, Gonchar says he wants to embrace the population's passion for hockey. "It's the No. 1 sport for them, and everybody is so much into it," he said. "Every time, you see how much people care about hockey, and it gives you that extra energy and challenge."

As a veteran of 15 NHL seasons, all with Eastern Conference teams, Gonchar has been to Ottawa enough to be familiar with the city. For the past two days, however, he has taken a closer look with wife, Ksenia, and daughters Natalie, 8, and Victoria, 15 months."