Sens owner decides he’s the right man for ceo job
What is it they say ... If you want something done right, do it yourself ?
Apparently, Eugene Melnyk has decided to take that approach in running his Ottawa Senators.
Rather than hiring a replacement for recently departed president and chief executive officer Tom Anselmi, the Senators owner will leave his cosy nest in Barbados, set up an office in the nation’s capital and assume the CEO duties of his own team, a well-placed source inside the organization says.
Melnyk is scheduled to roll up his sleeves and settle into the position next week. “That,” someone close to the Senators said, “is going to be interesting.”
It was almost 13 months ago that Melnyk, exasperated with sagging ticket sales, bumped highlyrespected Senators co-founder Cyril Leeder from his role of team president/CEO in favour of Anselmi, formerly a top executive with Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment.
While Anselmi was hired to oversee the LeBreton Flats project, he was also charged with solving attendance problems, but the latter situation only worsened.
The Senators drew all sorts of negative publicity across the country and the National Hockey League when they failed to attract capacity crowds to Canadian Tire Centre during their inspiring run through the playoffs last spring.
“It’s very disturbing,” Melnyk told Postmedia at the time.
After a summer to reassess, Melnyk and Anselmi hosted a news conference announcing that approximately 1,500 seats in the upper bowls would be covered with tarps in hopes of creating a “scarcity” that would push fans into buying more season tickets and ultimately fill the building.
That didn’t work, either. Instead, the numbers dropped further.
The Senators, who ranked 17th in attendance in 2015-16 and slipped to 21st last season, are now 24th and idling. Last Friday, the team announced that Anselmi was leaving the job he was hired to do 13 months earlier. No explanation was given by the team, but sources say Anselmi finally became fed up with Melnyk’s temper outbursts.
Melnyk came to town earlier this week and held a staff meeting, at which point he presented his new plan. The boss would become hands-on, directing the staff and running the business.
It is not known whether Melnyk will hold a news conference to share what strategy he has devised, if any, to increase the number of ticket-buying customers. But the odds of that happening appear to be slim, if his most recent means of communicating with the fans are any indication.
Last month, on a joyous day that brought the news of a long-awaited agreement in principle with the National Capital Commission to redevelop the cherished LeBreton Flats for the intention of building a new world-class home for the Senators, Melnyk left the NCC board room without speaking to the media, ensuring he would not have to answer any questions. Later, he released a statement. “I am thrilled to be moving a step closer to bringing fans a more enjoyable experience,” it read. “Though there are still many hurdles to overcome, today, we have moved a step closer to realizing a vision for LeBreton Flats — creating a place of pride for residents, the hockey team and visitors.”
Those “hurdles” for Melnyk and RendezVous LeBreton partner John Ruddy of Trinity Developments include the seemingly mountainous task of funding a project that is estimated to cost $3.5 billion.
In the meantime, Melnyk is taking another run at drawing fans back to his current rink. This time, he’s taking matters into his own hands.
This should be interesting.