Report: Toronto based group interested in buying Senators

According to a report from Bruce Garrioch of The Ottawa Sun, it looks like the Ottawa Senators are in the early stages of selling the team to an outside investor.

From Garrioch in a report earlier this week:

The Ottawa Senators are widely expected to be the next team to sell.  The Senators’ board of directors have “already interviewed sell-side bankers” and “there is significant interest in the franchise”.

For those who don’t know, “sell-side bankers” are advisors to the board of directors running the team on behalf of the Melnyk family. Those bankers would act as intermediaries to solicit bids which means they essentially act as a real estate agent for the team.

This is the first time since the passing of Senators’ owner Eugene Melnyk there has been any talk publicly the team may be sold. The franchise is part of the massive estate Melnyk left to his daughters, Anna and Olivia, and it has been operating business as usual since his death in March

- Bruce Garrioch

The Senators are owned by Anna and Olivia Melnyk, daughters of former long-time owner Eugene Melnyk who passed away in March of 2022. The Melnyk daughters have done an admirable job of guiding the team in the months since their father's passing but it's believed that the pair are looking to cash out and sell the franchise to someone else. Hard to blame them, really... this team was their father's project, not their own. To be perfectly honest, I feel like they've done a tremendous job after being thrust into a pretty difficult position. I can't imagine just one day waking up and being responsible for an NHL franchise and the hundreds of people that it employs. That's a lot of responsibility for anyone, forget a young woman just fresh out of college... oh and grieving her father's death, no less. 

There have been reports that Hollywood superstar and Vancouver native Ryan Reynolds has shown interest in buying the team, but the actor has yet to comment on those reports. Garrioch also reports that a Toronto based investor group has shown interest in purchasing the team, as well.

From Garrioch:

Sources say Jeffrey and Michael Kimel, who used to own a minority piece of the Pittsburgh Penguins before they sold to the Fenway Sports Group last year, have already expressed an interest in purchasing the Senators and being part of the LeBreton Flats project.

The Toronto-based brothers are on the board of the Harlo Financial Group, which invests in real estate, wealth management, and the entertainment industry. Michael Kimel is the head of the Chase Hospitality Group.

Michael Kimel recently founded OverActive Media, which invests in e-sports, and he also served on the management committee of the Penguins.

The Kimel family has the financial wherewithal to make a deal and the knowledge needed to help build LeBreton but they’re hardly alone on that front.

And if that weren't enough, there's yet another Toronto based investor interested in the Sens:

Another person who has been the subject of speculation is Toronto billionaire Michael Andlauer.

The owner of the OHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs also has a 20 per cent share in the Montreal Canadiens, and is said to covet controlling interest in his own NHL team. He’s also highly respected by Bettman and deputy commissioner Bill Daly.

For those unaware, the Melnyk family is also based out of Toronto and Eugene himself was a HUGE Toronto Maple Leafs fans before buying the Sens.