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He needs to start watching the Senators with no affiliation other than as one of the people he says he’s all about.

Melnyk has made it clear, in both his words and recent actions, that he can no longer afford a NHL franchise. Or at least not a competitive one.

As such, the faithful he cares so much for spent all day Sunday doing what they will do until 3 p.m. Monday – watching and waiting for the shameless gutting of a roster that, with a few tweaks, could have rebounded to playoff status again next year.

By getting rid of proven talent for prospects and draft picks, the Senators might even be able to contend in another five years – an optimistic timeline for a new downtown arena, by the way – if they can afford it by then.

However, the belief in Melnyk to actually get that done has now disappeared.

Surely wondering what he got himself into is the very respected John Ruddy, a shrewd businessman who, along with owning Trinity Development and a percentage of the Redblacks, has hooked up with Melnyk on the LeBreton Flats project so he could build on that prime piece of real estate.

As for the fans, they’d have more faith in the building of a championship calibre team to play in the new arena if Ruddy was working on it with his partners at Ottawa Sports and Entertainment instead.

Alas, there is no past or current interest from the OSEG guys to buy the Senators – if and when they do become available – just as Melnyk has sworn he has no intent to sell them.

Apparently, Melnyk prefers to tarnish his image and ignore the fact attempts are being made to chase him out of town.