Senators sale price could top $1 billion
The final price in the sale of the Ottawa Senators could reach ten figures.
Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds and the Vaughan-based real estate corporation Remington Group are said to be working on a bid worth more than $1 billion (U.S.) for the acquisition of the Senators and their arena, the Canadian Tire Centre, according to Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch.
Reynolds and real estate investor Christopher Bratty teamed up this year in an attempt to buy the NHL franchise. The Senators have been managed by sisters Olivia and Anna Melnyk since last March after their billionaire father, Eugene Melnyk, died of an undisclosed illness. He bought the team for $92 million in 2003.
The sports business website Sportico.com estimated the Senators’ value at $655 million in November, the least valuable of the seven Canadian franchises in the NHL. But the Reynolds-Barry group apparently is being aggressive as it tries to outbid other offers. The deadline for submissions is May 15.
Depth delivers
Former Maple Leafs defenceman Zach Bogosian understands the importance of his role with the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 32-year-old joined his team’s opening-round series against the Leafs in Game 2, after blueliner Erik Cernak was sidelined because of a hit to the head.
Bogosian points to the lesserknown names as key contributors. Anthony Cirelli and Alex Killorn lead Tampa Bay with three goals each in the series.
“I think what’s given (the Lightning) success over the last few years is that depth,” Bogosian said. “I still think the guys like the Stammers, the Pointers and Kuches that you’re talking about (forwards Steven Stamkos, Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov), they’re doing a lot of really good things, whether you score or show up in the scoresheet or not.
“In the playoffs, it’s all about the little things that probably don’t show up that win you hockey games, and those guys do it every single night. They’re so talented that I guess a goal or an assist will happen, but it’s more of the little things that add up for the team win.”
Avs quiet on Nichushkin
The Colorado Avalanche did not comment Friday on the status of forward Valeri Nichushkin, who has been away from the team for a few days, or on a police report about an incident at the team hotel in Seattle last weekend.
Colorado coach Jared Bednar again said Friday that Nichushkin is away from the team for personal reasons.
“It’s not a professional decision. It’s a personal decision why he’s not here,” Bednar said before the Avalanche faced the Kraken in Game 6 of their first-round series, which Seattle leads 3-2.
“Next one,” Avs forward Mikko Rantanen said when asked about Nichushkin.
Nichushkin has not played since Game 2, on April 20, when he scored a goal in Colorado’s 3-2 victory.
Officers responded to a crisis call at the Four Seasons Hotel in Seattle on the afternoon of Game 3, according to a report from the Seattle Police Department. A 28-year-old woman was in an ambulance when officers arrived, and medics were told to speak with Avalanche team physician Dr. Bradley Changstrom to gather more details.
According to the report, Changstrom told officers that team employees found the woman when they were checking in on Nichushkin. He said the woman appeared to be too intoxicated to have left the hotel “in a ride share or cab service,” and requested EMS assistance.