Ottawa Senators confirm NHL club is for sale

The Ottawa Senators confirm the club is for sale, and says the condition of any sale is that it remains in Ottawa.

The board of directors of Senators Sports and Entertainment announced that a process has been initiated for the sale of the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club.

Galatioto Sports Partners, a New York-based bank that provides advisory services to the sports industry, has been retained as its financial advisor.

"This was a necessary and prudent step to connect with those deeply interested parties who can show us what their vision is for the future of the team," Sheldon Plener, chairman and governor of the Ottawa Senators, said in a statement.

"A condition of any sale will be that the team remains in Ottawa."

Melnyk’s daughters Anna and Olivia took over the Senators after their father passed away in March due to illness. The franchise is being run by a three-person board of directors.

Sports business publication Sportico reported on Tuesday the Senators had retained Galatioto to explore a sale of the team. Sportico valued the Senators at $655 million U.S., a 21 per cent jump in the past year, the largest in the NHL.

Senators founder Bruce Firestone tells CTV News Ottawa it is important to keep the Senators in Ottawa.

"I think the Commissioner Gary Bettman has said many, many times he doesn't want his franchises on roller-skates, he doesn't believe in relocating franchises," Firestone said. "Whether it's the Melnyk family, or it's the commissioner or just the fans like me we want the team to stay here in Ottawa."

Firestone says it's a good time for a change of ownership, with the team on the upswing and excitement around the future of the club.

"I think the future's great. The MOU with the National Capital Commission is a really big part of this too. Having a downtown arena with a light rail transit system, I really think it's a good situation."

The Senators are launching the process to sell the club as it continues talks with the National Capital Commission on building a new arena. In June, the Senators and the NCC reached a memorandum of understanding to build a new arena for the team at LeBreton Flats, just west of downtown Ottawa.

There is reportedly significant interest in the Senators. Roger Greenberg, the executive chairman of Minto Group and the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group, told CTV News in April his family would “likely participate” in new ownership if the team goes up for sale.

People magazine reported on Wednesday that Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds is "very interested" in buying the franchise, citing a source close to the Deadpool star.

The Ottawa Senators returned to the league in 1992.

With files from CTV News Ottawa's Michael Woods