Ottawa Senators goaltender Alex Auld (35) stops Nashville Predators’ Patric Hornqvist, right, during second-period NHL hockey action in Ottawa, Ontario, Feb. 9, 2012.
Fred Chartrand
The National Hockey League’s Ottawa Senators have found a new owner.
Toronto-based billionaire Michael Andlauer has agreed to acquire the Senators, setting a record for the highest price paid for an NHL team, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The deal is said to be valued at nearly $1 billion, Sportico earlier reported.
Andlauer is already a minority owner of the Montreal Canadiens and had been called out in reports as an interested bidder for the Senators months ago. As part of the deal for the Senators, Andlauer will have to sell his stake in the Canadiens, The Athletic reported.
The businessman is also the CEO of ATS Healthcare Group, which he founded in 1991.
The team went up for sale last year after its previous owner, Eugene Melnyk, died at 62. Melnyk had owned the Senators since 2003, when he bought the team for $92 million.
Galatioto Sports Partners led the sale on behalf of the Melnyk family.
