BETTMAN: ‘The bids are going to have to stand on their own merit’

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If a Hollywood star wants to be a partner in the new ownership group of the Ottawa Senators, Gary Bettman understands it can help, but only if the bid they make is good enough to win.

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The NHL commissioner told the Bob McCown podcast in an interview posted Friday that having the likes of Vancouver-born actor Ryan Reynolds as a partner in the Remington Group or rapper Snoop Dogg in another bid could be beneficial.

“It can be a plus for the franchise going forward,” Bettman told McCown and co-host John Shannon in the interview that aired on Sirius XM. “But the bids are going to have to stand on their own merit.”

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We know Reynolds, who has ownership experience with Wrexham FC in Wales, will bring that to the table with the Remington Group, but they’re only one of seven bidders. Snoop Dogg joined a consortium led by Los Angeles producer Neko Sparks.

With the deadline for binding bids set for May 15 by Galatioto Sports Partners (GSP), the New York-based bankers handling the sale for the Melnyk family, it’s anybody’s guess who will own the Senators.

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Bettman noted he’s been happy with the interest.

“I’m very pleased,” Bettman said. “I think our franchises are going to become increasingly more valuable than they are even are now. For some period of time, the perception has been that we’ve undervalued.

“There are four major sports leagues in North America, there’s a limited number of franchises, we tell a pretty compelling story about our growth retroactively and prospectively. When you come into this we have a system that enables you to be competitive if you’re well run.

“If you’re interested in sports, and you want to own a team, why wouldn’t you want to be part of the NHL?”

If you feel this sale has dragged on, Bettman admitted it has taken a little longer than he expected.

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“I’m not the one running the process, there’s an investment banker in New York, and he consults with me, so I know what’s going on,” said Bettman. “The timeline may be about right or may be a little slower because of how many prospective owners there are that have to do their due diligence.

“But it’s great to see, and as important as anything else, it should tell all the fans in Ottawa that this franchise is going to have a very bright future right there in Ottawa. Maybe not in Kanata, maybe downtown, but the nation’s capital is generating a tremendous amount of interest from prospective NHL owners. That’s good for anybody interested in that franchise.”

Bettman said he speaks to GSP on “whether or not there’s too much publicity” or “when things are getting leaked that shouldn’t be,” but usually talks to banker Sal Galatioto twice a week.

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“I’m there to help him, but he’s the one handling the mechanics of the process and doing the due diligence,” said Bettman.

Bettman doesn’t mind the attention but hasn’t liked some of the speculation. Postmedia has reported the Remington Group is prepared to bid $1 billion (all figures U.S.) while Sparks reportedly had the highest bid in the first round at over $900 million.

‘If people want to express an interest, saying they want to be involved, I’m good with that,” Bettman said. “The nuts and bolts of what’s going on, who’s bidding what, I don’t think that helps the process. A lot of it, I believe, is part of the negotiation where one group is trying to get a leg up or discourage others from bidding. Who knows?

“You know me, until something is done, the less publicity the better. There’s a lot being speculated that isn’t accurate.”

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Bettman said it will be up to the new owner to decide if they want to complete a lease with the National Capital Commission to move to LeBreton Flats or look at options closer to downtown.

“That’s something the new owner has to explore,” Bettman said. “There are opportunities to go downtown to multiple sites actually. When somebody actually gets in there, looks under the hood and sees what the engine is like, they’ll have to make a decision as to whether or not they think it’s a good opportunity.

“At 10,000 feet, I think it’s a good opportunity but the Devil, as they say, will be in the details. It probably, viscerally, would be a good thing and good opportunity for the team to be downtown. But there’s nothing wrong with the building they’re in now. It’s just based on population, movement, shifts and where people are living. It may be better off to be downtown, but it’s not something hard and fast that you have to do.

“That’s going to be up to the person who owns this club.”

With at least four of the groups led by developers, many view this deal as being as much about the real estate involved as it’s about the club.

“The purchase of the team I don’t see as a real estate play because I think the team is valuable on its own. Anybody who owns this team isn’t going to have a guarantee on a real estate play,” he said. “There’s a potential opportunity, but that isn’t fixed.”

bgarrioch@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/sungarrioch