The Ottawa Senators filed for bankruptcy protection Thursday afternoon, as majority owner Rod Bryden warned there is a chance the Senators will be forced to leave the city if fans don't start coming to games.

"There is more than a chance that this team will not play in Ottawa," Bryden told a news conference. "How is this team going to survive when it doesn't have the best team in the league, if it can't fill the building when it does?"

The team filed under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA), which provides protection from insolvency. The court filing means the team can continue to play while it looks at restructuring its debts. It also means the team could be sold and moved to another city.

Bryden said it is up to the community, and the fans, to make sure that the team stays in Ottawa. He said he doesn't understand why the seats aren't filled every game.

"I can't drive down the street without substantially everybody I see telling me what a great team it is and how they love hockey and they tell more about the team than I know," he said.

"Unfortunately they watch it on TV. They don't come and buy a ticket. Well, they need to come and buy a ticket."

The Senators rank 16th in the 30-team league this season with average attendance of 16,355 in the 18,500-capacity Corel Centre.

Those who've already chipped in for season's tickets for next year or any other payments to the Senators will have their money held in trust until the team's future is cleared up.

He said he hoped to retain control of the team, but wasn't sure if he would be able to make a bid to buy the team on or before the Jan. 14 deadline. If the offer isn't made or isn't accepted before Jan. 24, the franchise will be open to others to bid on.

"If I'm confident that a bid that I can provide meets what I would expect to be what would be needed to be successful, then I will submit that bid," Bryden said.

"All that means is that I would then submit a bid at some other time in the process of the regular marketing process. And it's not always the case that being the earliest bidder means that you get a good result."

The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and the U.S.-based FleetBoston Financial Corp. will provide interim financing for the franchise of $8.8 million US, or $13.7 million Cdn, with a 30-day window for bankruptcy protection. PricewaterhouseCoopers has been named the trustee.

Reports suggest the Senators were hoping for twice that amount in interim financing while it restructures its huge debts.

Both the NHL and the team asked the court to keep all financial documents pertaining to the restructuring confidential. At least one media outlet is expected to argue for full disclosure in a hearing Friday.

While the Senators are the National Hockey League's top team in points this season, they have struggled to stay afloat for years. The option of filing for bankruptcy protection arose last week, after a $235-million refinancing deal fell through. The players have not been paid since then. Bryden said they will likely get paid on Friday.

CTV's Mike Eppel told Newsnet the team is not in financial straits because of high player salaries, which are among the lowest in the league. He said the club just amassed too much debt, mainly from the building of the Corel Centre.

"Ottawa is a good hockey market. They just have to get their finances in order," Eppel said.

The team owes about $160 million to major creditors that include CIBC, FleetBoston Financial Corp., the NHL, and brokerage J.P. Morgan. The team also owes about another $210 million to Covanta Energy Corp., an insolvent New Jersey energy company that financed the construction of the Corel Centre in 1995.

A court date for the Senators has been set for Feb. 11, one day after their bankruptcy protection runs out.

Only two other major sports franchises in North America have filed for bankruptcy protection in the last 29 years -- the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Los Angeles Kings.

The Penguins filed in 1974 and again in 1988, after which Mario Lemieux took over the club. The Kings filed for bankruptcy in 1995 to allow a sale of the team to go ahead.

Sports magnate eyes Corel Centre

The Ottawa Citizen reported Thursday that the Senators' arena is being eyed by a major U.S. sports and entertainment company. The newspaper says that Kroenke Sports Enterprises, owned by billionaire sports magnate and Wal-Mart heir E. Stanley Kroenke, is looking at acquiring the Corel Centre, but not the team.

The Denver-based Kroenke Sports owns four sports franchises, including the NHL's Colorado Avalanche and the National Basketball Association's Denver Nuggets.

Its ownership of the Colorado Avalanche prohibits it from buying the Senators because of the conflict-of-interest issues that could arise from owning two teams. The only possibility to buy the team would be through a sister company with which Kroenke has a strategic alliance.

It's not clear whether the acquisition of the Corel Centre would help the Senators, or drive the final nail into their coffin.

The Senators might not be able to survive without the Corel Centre because events, such as concerts, help subsidize the team. On the other hand, Bryden might work with Kroenke to ensure the viability of the team and the arena.

The Citizen reports that Kroenke is interested in the Corel Centre because of its similarities to the company's Pepsi Center in downtown Denver. The 52-acre property surrounding the Pepsi Center is dotted with baseball and football stadiums, an amusement park as well as shopping and restaurants.

Kroenke ranked 413th on Forbes magazine's 2002 list of the 500 richest people in the world with an estimated net worth of $1.1 billion. His wife, Ann Walton, daughter of Wal-Mart co-founder Bud Walton, ranked 144th with $2.8 billion.

Kroenke's lacrosse team, the Colorado Mammoth, will be in Ottawa Saturday to play the Rebel at the Civic Centre. The Citizen reports that rumours suggest a top Kroenke executive will accompany the team to Ottawa, and will take a look at the Corel Centre.

With reports from The Canadian Press and TSN.ca