(Ottawa) The plan to play a handful of Ottawa Senators games in Quebec City is on hold due to the death of Eugene Melnyk, Pierre Karl Péladeau said Tuesday at the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage.
Posted at 8:32 p.m.
President and CEO of Quebecor, Péladeau, has however confirmed that the said project has already been in the cards.
“There was a project to be able to offer parts of the Senators in Quebec, at the Videotron Center. But due to the premature death of Eugene Melnyk (owner of the Senators), the project can no longer evolve. »
It was Melnyk’s daughters who inherited the club after their father’s death at the end of March. Anna and Olivia lead the Senators, now valued at $525 million according to Forbes.
Melnyk bought the Senators in 2003 for $92m USD when the team was in dire financial straits and its future in the nation’s capital was in jeopardy.
However, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said days after Melnyk’s death the team was not for sale at the time.
Péladeau was also asked about the return of an NHL team – full time – to Quebec.
“We are still in discussion with the league,” said Péladeau. I have enormous respect for the commissioner (Bettman) and the deputy commissioner (Bill Daly). We maintain a commercial relationship as a broadcaster. »
“We have been making the same point from the beginning: that Quebec is a growing city, a city where the economic situation is improving, where there is a ready broadcaster and an amphitheater of international quality. That’s not to mention the fan base. There is nothing missing from the equation for an NHL team to settle in Quebec. »
Péladeau concluded his scrum by saying that the people of Quebec can be hopeful of the return of the NHL to their city. To know if he was optimistic in the short term, the businessman was content to answer: “it’s not me who decides”, laughing.