Bill Daly indicates there’s ‘significant interest’ to purchase Ottawa Senators

There is significant interest in the purchase of the Ottawa Senators, according to National Hockey League (NHL) deputy commissioner Bill Daly at the NHL board of governors meeting on Monday, Dec. 12 who declined to disclose how many bidders were on the table.

“There seems to be significant interest, which is good,” Daly said to reporters. “Should be a healthy process.”

The Senators officially initiated the sale in early November, months after longtime owner Eugene Melnyk passed away.

The sale comes under the condition that the club remains in Ottawa.

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.

The sale became high-profile as Vancouver-born actor Ryan Reynolds confirmed his interest in buying the franchise and attended a Senators game on Nov. 8, earning a standing ovation from the Ottawa crowd.

The Senators also provided an update on the ongoing legal battle between Capital Sport Management Inc. — formerly owned by Melnyk — and Trinity Development Group over the bid to redevelop LeBreton Flats into a new arena.

“All of the parties involved in this matter have reached an out-of-court settlement,” the statement said.

The case was scheduled to go to court in January.