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“Mr. Melnyk made it clear to me that we have the resources to hire the best coach available,” Dorion said. “We’re going to hire someone good.”

No replacement is expected to be named in the near future but you can be guaranteed the Senators will look for someone with NHL experience because they don’t want to give another rookie head coach a chance.

Expect to hear the name of Mike Yeo, fired by Minny earlier this year, as a possible candidate. If Bruce Boudreau is fired by Anaheim after an early playoff exit then he’d be on the list.

The club will be keeping a close eye on Boston Bruins’ coach Claude Julien but that’s considered a longshot at best.

“We’ll definitely look at someone who will make the commitment to have our players play defence,” said Dorion.

Three weeks ago, owner Eugene Melnyk promised “key changes” to the club’s hockey department and this decision doesn’t come as any surprise.

Melnyk was critical of some of Cameron’s use of personnel and nobody in the organization is pleased the club didn’t making the playoffs.

After going on a historic run to make the post-season last spring, the Senators just couldn’t find the magic again.

The decision not to invite the coaching staff to the club’s exit meetings Monday was the final sign that Cameron, and likely most of the assistants, won’t be back next season.

“This is not a great day. This is not a fun day. These are human beings here,” said Dorion.

The Senators were among the NHL’s worst teams on the power play and penalty killing units even with top defenceman Erik Karlsson.

Finding a replacement won’t be easy but don’t be surprised if the Senators wait to see what happens in the first round of the playoffs before making any decision.

bgarrioch@postmedia.com

twitter: @sungarrioch

bgarrioch@postmedia.com