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NHL commissioner Gary Bettman says the ‘process is underway’ to sell the Senators

The sale of the Ottawa Senators has shifted to another gear.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman on Tuesday night confirmed a Postmedia report that the data room for prospective owners to look at the club’s finances has opened and Galatioto Sports Partners is a step closer to accepting bids for the franchise.

Speaking to reporters in Montreal before the Canadiens took on the Boston Bruins, Bettman indicated the sale of the franchise is moving forward.

“I believe the data room is open,” Bettman said at the Bell Center. “The people who filed applications have begun to do their due diligence so my understanding is the process is underway.”

More than a dozen groups signed non-disclosure agreements, but it doesn’t mean they all received access. The potential owners were heavily vetted before being given approval, and the expectation is that they’ve been given a bidding date by GSP.

The website includes the club’s ticket sales for the last decade, corporate sponsorship agreements, the broadcast deal with Bell Media and the level of debt the late Eugene Melnyk was carrying.

There will also be a copy of the organization’s memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the National Capital Commission for a new rink at LeBreton Flats.

The new owners have been told they have to keep the team in Ottawa and the league will require them to get a lease agreement in place with the NCC.

Bettman was asked about the possibility of a franchise in Quebec City.

He noted that Montreal owner Geoff Molson would support another team in the province, but confirmed there were “hypothetical” discussions about the Senators playing regular season games at the Videotron Center before Melnyk’s untimely death.

“That’s not on the drawing board right now,” Bettman said of possible neutral-site games in Quebec. “There were rumored discussions about Ottawa, but that was before Eugene Melnyk passed away, and whether or not those hypothetical discussions would ever take place again will depend on who ultimately owns the (Senators).”

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