NHL Notebook: Ryan Reynolds won’t be buying the Ottawa Senators, Edmonton Oil Kings draft Jarome Iginla’s son Joe, and more
By Zach Laing
11 months agoIt turns out that Ryan Reynolds won’t be buying the Ottawa Senators after all.
This, according to ESPN’s Emily Kaplan, who citing sources reported Thursday that the bid Reynolds was attached to won’t be going any further.
The actor, known most notably for his role as Deadpool, joined forces with real estate developer Remington Group in search of purchasing the Senators. Last November the team was put up for sale following the death of longtime owner Eugene Melnyk, and as Kaplan noted, has become somewhat of a bidding war between celebrities.
Snoop Dogg announced he is part of a bid led by Los Angeles-based businessman Neko Sparks while The Weeknd is part of a bid by Toronto billionaires Jeffrey and Michael Kimel, according to the Ottawa Sun.According to sources, Reynolds’ request for an exclusive window to complete the deal was denied, which led Reynolds to pull out of the process. The deadline for interested groups to submit final nonbinding offers is May 15.A recent Forbes valuation put the Senators at $800 million. The Remington Group’s bid was believed to be worth more than $1 billion, according to sources.
Iginla in Edmonton
The WHL’s Bantam Draft took place on Thursday with the Edmonton Oil Kings selecting Joe Iginla — the son of St. Albert’s own Jarome Iginla.
Joe, 14, spent last season playing for RINK Hockey Academy Kelowna’s U15P team where he posted some incredible numbers. In 27 games played in the regular season, he scored 37 goals and 65 points. In the post-season, his numbers remained as excellent scoring six goals and 12 points in just five games.
Here’s some of what scouting service Puck Preps Western Canada said about Iginla:
Joe has the ability to toe drag, stutter step, shift his weight, apply give-and-gos in transition, poke pucks free, gather them, spin off coverage and constatnly adapt with quick processing and magnet puck control. The projectability of his success comes from the understanding that if you try and eliminate one of his tools, he will just try and score another way.
Puck Preps projects him to be a top-line forward in the WHL with an expected arrival in 2024-25.
Flames deny Treliving interview opportunities
While former Calgary Flames GM Brad Treliving is reportedly garnering interest for executive roles around the league, the team isn’t allowing him to interview for any roles.
Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reported the news Thursday morning, adding that the Flames won’t allow him to interview until his contract officially expires on June 30th.
Here’s some of what Daily Faceoff wrote about Treliving:
It was Treliving’s first NHL GM job, taking over in 2014-15 after spending seven years prior as Atrizona’s assistant GM. The 53-year-old had a brief pro career prior, spending parts of two years in the AHL and five years in the ECHL.Last summer proved to be a difficult one for Treliving and the Flames, with the team moving on from franchise stars Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk, with the ladder being one of the top players in the NHL this season. Treliving brought in Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri and signed both to massive deals, only for both to fall below expectations.The Flames missed the playoffs this season with a 37-27-17 record, a big step back after looking like one of the teams to beat last year in the west. Change was needed, and after Treliving left, coach Darryl Sutter’s departure soon followed.Calgary currently has $1.25 million in cap space for the 2023-24 season, according to CapFriendly. Huberdeau’s $10.5 million cap hit is set to nearly double his salary from last year. Milan Lucic, Nick Ritchie, Trevor Lewis, Troy Stecher and Michael Stone are set to become UFAs this season, sith no RFAs on the table.
Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@thenationnetwork.com.
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