Senators Owner Eugene Melnyk has died "from an illness" at age 62, the team revealed last night. Melnyk was Owner, governor and Chair of the club that he purchased for $92M in '03. Under his watch, the Senators reached the Stanley Cup Final in '07 and "more recently, played in the Eastern Conference finals" in '17. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman "called Melnyk a passionate and committed owner of the NHL franchise" (TORONTO STAR, 3/29). The team announced Melnyk's death with a statement from his family that mentioned “an illness he faced with determination and courage.” The statement "did not explain what the illness was, and a team spokesman did not immediately respond to a message seeking additional details." Melnyk had a liver transplant in '15 after a public campaign for a donor (CP, 3/28).

The women's Final Four is set, with the UConn, South Carolina, Stanford and Louisville headed to Minneapolis. Each team "brings plenty of talent and intriguing storylines to the table." South Carolina, the wire-to-wire AP top-ranked team, is making its "fourth appearance in seven years." Louisville is the No. 1-seed that "fashions itself as a plucky underdog." Stanford has been "dominant in the tournament and brings a tremendous amount of depth." UConn has "historically entered the postseason among the favorites, but this season has been a different story" (ESPN.com, 3/28).

UConn is in its 14th consecutive Final Four after a 91-87 double-OT victory against top-seeded N.C. State in Bridgeport. “It’s one of the best games I’ve ever been a part of,” UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. “It was just amazing the way the 10 kids on the court are playing for their lives and nobody wants to lose. The game was everything a game of this magnitude is supposed to be, two great teams fighting for a precious place in the Final Four" (HARTFORD COURANT, 3/29).

The NFL would now consider the presence of racial minorities in a proposed ownership group to be a tiebreaker between two similar bids for a team. "All things being equal, the ownership would look upon a minority group more favorably,” said NFL VP/Communications Brian McCarthy, replying to a clarifying question about a statement issued by all 32 clubs earlier today the NFL annual meeting.

That statement reads: "The NFL member clubs support the important goal of increasing diversity among ownership. Accordingly, when evaluating a prospective ownership group of a member club pursuant to league policies, the membership will regard it as a positive and meaningful factor if the group includes diverse individuals who would have a significant equity stake in and involvement with the club, including serving as the controlling owner of the club."

The NFL did not change any specific rules about ownership, including the one that says the proposed control owner must hold at least 30% of the equity, said Steelers Owner Art Rooney II. Experts have said waiving those rules would make it much easier for minorities to buy teams. “The statement is intended to encourage minority participation in the groups that are being put together to buy a team,” Rooney said. “And it’s a statement that we certainly welcome minority ownership, and encourage minority ownership in any club that changes hands.”

The NFL can always add new conditions on ownership, because any change in control requires approval of 24 of 32 owners. But this statement is especially notable in the context of the only current team for sale -- the Broncos -- because that team is being sold by the Patrick D. Bowlen Trust, which has a fiduciary duty to the Bowlen family to maximize the financial return, limiting its ability to consider non-economic aspects of bids. Rooney added, “It is my understanding at this point there are minority participants in several of the groups that are bidding."

The Steelers are in talks with Kraft Heinz Co. over "possibly extending the long-standing naming rights" for the team’s stadium. The venue has been named Heinz Field "since it opened 21 years ago," the result of a 20-year, $57M naming-rights deal that was extended by one year in early '21. With the naming rights up again, both parties said that they are "focused on the negotiations but would not elaborate." A statement from Kraft Heinz "acknowledged the discussions and said the company hopes to finalize its plans in the next few months." Following the '15 merger of Kraft and Heinz, the company has co-HQs in Pittsburgh and Chicago (TRIBLIVE.com, 3/28).

Rumors of the Sabres being for sale "can be put to rest." Pegula Sports & Entertainment Exec VP Ron Raccuia said that the NHL franchise owned by Terry and Kim Pegula and "other properties owned by PSE are not on the market." Raccuia: "None of them are for sale, none will be. There's no plans at all for that." In addition to the Sabres, PSE owns and operates the Bills, AHL Rochester Americans, two NLL franchises (Buffalo Bandits and Rochester Knighthawks), LECOM Harborcenter, Black River Entertainment and several other entities (BUFFALO NEWS, 3/29).

Entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk has joined Major League Pickleball as the owner of one of four newly created expansion teams that will begin play this year. The identities of the other new team owners are unknown. The incoming investors have paid an undisclosed expansion fee -- a source said it is a six-figure sum -- and will be responsible for team operating expenses. Vaynerchuk said he first played the sport in '18 when he participated in a South by Southwest charity event alongside tennis players Andy Roddick and Andre Agassi. More recently, he jumped at the opportunity to invest in MLP following conversations with league founder Steve Kuhn and President Brooks Wiley.

“It’s so obvious to me as a macro thing,” said Vaynerchuk. “Obviously I hope the MLP is the big winner, but I would be flabbergasted if there wasn’t a substantial league that was a viable business in 15 years in America and around the world in pickleball.” Vaynerchuk’s investment is part of MLP expanding from eight teams to 12 for the '22 season.

MLP will host its 2022 player draft on May 28 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in N.Y. amid the Association of Pickleball Professionals (APP) Tour’s New York City Open. The league has also now finalized plans for its first event of the year, which will take place in June at the Dreamland facility in Dripping Springs, Texas. The draft and first competition will both be livestreamed across MLP digital and social channels, and the tournament finals will be broadcast live on CBS Sports Network.

UFC has renewed its partnership with Iconic Events Releasing, which works with hundreds of movie theaters across the country to put PPV fights on their big screens for fans to watch. The deal originally started last January, and the renewal is for the duration of '22. Iconic Events works with more than 350 movie theaters in the U.S. including the major national brands like AMC and smaller regional chains to get them to show every UFC PPV event, with there typically being one a month. UFC gets a cut of ticket sales, while movie theaters get a new way to bring in paying consumers to their establishments.

UFC Senior VP/International & Content Dave Shaw told SBJ that the deal did not perform at its highest potential over the last year because of the pandemic, but the hope is that sales will improve now as people begin to get back to their regular lives. On top of showing the fights themselves, part of the deal also includes having the theaters air ads for UFC during the regular promotions before movies start. UFC will also be promoted to potential customers via the theaters' email databases. The deal continues next month with UFC 273 from Jacksonville.

FEVO and HotelPlanner have launched a service provider partnership that will enable the social commerce company’s customers to add lodging to FEVO ticket packages they book. Additionally, HotelPlanner’s booking engine becomes the exclusive hotel provider for all FEVO corporate travel. FEVO, which specializes in using social influence to create group sales, and has over 700 clients, including a considerable sports footprint.  FEVO and HotelPlanner arranged their deal internally.

Charlotte-area sports organizations, including SBJ, have partnered to offer new experiences for young people interested in the sports industry. The inaugural Charlotte Difference Makers Sports Fellowship, in partnership with Sports Biz Camps, will be a nine-month professional development and leadership program for area college students. Kicking off this summer, the cohort of 12 fellows will represent marginalized populations who historically have been underrepresented in leadership positions across sports. They will receive access, professional experience and mentorship across an unprecedented collection of community-minded sports companies Apply here (SBJ).

Download the Charlotte Difference Makers

Nielsen is "nearing a sale to a group of private-equity firms that would value the TV ratings company at around $16 billion including debt, resurrecting a deal after talks fell apart last week." A consortium led by Elliott Management Corp. and Brookfield Asset Management Inc. are "close to an agreement to pay $28 a share for the TV ratings company," according to sources (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 3/29).

The Premier Hockey Federation's Boston Pride won their second straight Isobel Cup championship last night with a 4-2 victory over the Connecticut Whale at the AdventHealth Center Ice complex in Wesley Chapel, Fla. (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 3/29).

Baylor and The Brandr Group have a new group licensing agreement to help student-athletes profit off their NIL co-branding with the school’s official trademarks and logos (TBG).

The MLB Cardinals’ April 7 home opener against the Pirates has become a “much hotter ticket” since DH Albert Pujols re-signed with the team, as the get-in price has “more than doubled” from $39 to $86 since last week (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 3/29).

“Once you make the change, then you’re stuck for five years. So we want to make sure that if we’re going to do it, it’s worthwhile and we’ll be happy for the next five years” -- Lions President Rod Wood, on the team potentially changing jerseys in the near future (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 3/29).

“I didn’t realize it was going to be that much. But I’m not mad at it" -- Comedian JB Smoove, on the amount of marketing using his ads with Caesars Sportsbook (N.Y. POST, 3/28).

The ORLANDO SENTINEL notes a market correction "could be next" for the many NIL collectives in college sports. There are 40 school-centric NIL collectives, and most "feature a membership platform where supporters sign up for various levels based on a monthly subscription fee." But despite their similarities, "not all collectives are alike." Some entrepreneurs are "trying to change the face of collectives."

Also:

• Why USOPC officials are concerned about Utah's ban on transgender youth athletes.
• Looking at the new wave of sponsors across the Premier League.

Mr. Melnyk provided me, my teammates, and many Sens players who came before us with an opportunity to live out our dream. The Ottawa community will miss you greatly. Condolences to your family. https://t.co/lNeXwUDurF

— brady tkachuk (@BradyTkachuk71) March 29, 2022

NHL Awards will be held the night before Game 3, or the off-day between Games 3 and 4 of the Stanley Cup Final — in the city hosting those games. One-hour event…definitely like the idea.

— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) March 28, 2022

"Well just turn on ESPN. They don't even know the Raptors exist." - Jack Armstrong

— Chris Walder (@WalderSports) March 29, 2022

Heard the NHL’s consistently horrible officiating and egregiously missed calls were a “hot topic” at Day 1 of the NHL GM’s meeting today. The NHL kicked off the discussion by reminding GM’s that anyone who publicly criticizes the officiating will be severely fined. #GarysWorld

— Allan Walsh (@walsha) March 29, 2022

Tony Hawk appeared on "The Late Late Show" last night andtalked about breaking his femur three weeks ago when he fell off his skateboard, and "they put a titanium rod in and sent me on my way.” Host James Corden: “You’re like a bionic man now.” Hawk replied, “I do feel like that, yes.” The broadcast aired a clip from the HBO documentary “Tony Hawk: Until the Wheels Fall Off” with Corden noting, “You really don’t have to know anything about skateboarding to enjoy it.” Hawk said he “had no control over the narrative so when I saw it for the first time it was hard, it was somewhat uncomfortable. But I really liked (Dir Sam Jones’) perspective and I liked the questions he raises about it, like doing it at our age with the risk versus reward, and he had a really good take on my youth because even though I had success it was hard" (“The Late Late Show,” CBS, 3/29).

Last night’s "Final Jeopardy!" category was "Sports History,"

"Who is Satchel Paige?"