Senators Sports & Entertainment say process is underway to sell NHL team

Nov 4, 2022 | 7:58 AM

OTTAWA — The Ottawa Senators are on the market.

The board of directors of Senators Sports & Entertainment says a process has been initiated for the sale of the NHL club.

Galatioto Sports Partners, a firm specializing in the sports finance and advisory business, has been retained as its financial adviser.

The team said in a press release that “a condition of any sale will be that the team remains in Ottawa.”

Senators owner Eugene Melnyk died on March 28 at age 62 after battling an illness.

He had previously said he planned to leave the team to his daughters, Anna and Olivia.

Melnyk purchased the Senators in 2003 for US$92 million at a time when the franchise faced bankruptcy and a tenuous future in the nation’s capital.

A recent valuation from Sportico, an organization that reports on the business of sports, listed the Senators at $655 million.

The team’s day-to-day operations has been handled by the board of directors since Melnyk’s death.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2022.

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press