Eugene Melnyk
Encyclopedia
Eugene Melnyk is a Ukrainian Canadian
businessman who now resides in Barbados
. He is the current owner, governor, and chairman of the Ottawa Senators
professional ice hockey
club of the National Hockey League
(NHL). He also owns the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors
junior-age ice hockey club. He is the former chairman and CEO
of Biovail Corporation and former owner of Trimel Corporation.
On May 2011, the Ontario Securities Commission
in Canada
banned Eugene Melnyk from senior roles at public companies in Canada, for five years and penalized him to pay $565,000. Earlier in the same year Melnyk had settled with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission
(SEC), agreeing to pay a civil penalty of $150,000 US and he had previously paid $1 million U.S. to settle other claims with the SEC.
of the Ontario Hockey League
, which he still owns. Until 2007, the club played at the St. Michael's Arena in Toronto, but has now relocated to Mississauga, Ontario
. As there was a club already in Mississauga, the IceDogs, Melnyk purchased the IceDogs and resold them to move the Majors into the IceDogs home arena. The new ownership of the IceDogs has relocated the team to St. Catharines, Ontario
and is now known as the Niagara IceDogs
.
On August 26, 2003, Melnyk purchased the Ottawa Senators
hockey
club of the NHL and their arena, Scotiabank Place
out of bankruptcy. He is the sole owner and holds the titles of governor and chairman.
On September 16, 2008, Melnyk proposed plans for an Ottawa Major League Soccer
professional soccer team, and a new soccer-specific Ottawa Soccer Stadium
.
and Ta Wee
are buried. His racing and horse breeding
operations have more than 200 Thoroughbreds. All of the Melnyk racehorses are named after Barbados landmarks and carry the blue and gold national colours. Blue and gold are also Ukrainian national colours.
Melnyk was named a trustee of the New York Racing Association
in August 2003, a position from which he resigned in January 2007. He currently serves on the board of directors of the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation. Melnyk was a co-recipient of the National Turf Writers Association's 2002 Joe Palmer Award and has also been honored by the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association
as national owners of the year in 2005, and he formerly sat on the TOBA board of directors.
In 1998, his colt Archers Bay
won Canada's most prestigious race, the Queen's Plate
. Another highlight came in 2007 with the 3-year-old filly Sealy Hill
, who became the first filly to win the Canadian Triple Tiara, which legs include the $500,000 Woodbine Oaks
, the Bison City Stakes
, and the Wonder Where Stakes
, since the series was inaugurated in 1999. Sealy Hill was awarded with triple Sovereign Award
s--3-year-old filly, turf female and Canadian Horse of the Year. Melnyk also was a recipient of his first Sovereign Award as top owner.
Top racehorses include champion sprinter Speightstown, winner of the 2004 Breeders' Cup Sprint, Marchfield (2007 Breeders' Stakes), Flower Alley (2005 Travers), Pool Land (2006 Ruffian), Marley Vale (Test), Tweedside (Coaching Club American Oaks), Bishop Court Hill (Carter), Harmony Lodge (Ballerina), along with other graded stakes winners Indian Vale, Gouldings Green, Strong Hope, Host, Fisher Pond, Lodge Hill, Bovell, Pico Teneriffe, and Graeme Hall. Owns a substantial quantity of bloodstock and is standing stallions in Florida and Kentucky, including Speightstown (at WinStar Farm
), Strong Hope (at Claiborne Farm
), and Flower Alley (at Three Chimneys Farm
), and Graeme Hall. In 2009 Harlington will stand at Hill 'n' Dale Farms
.
. Melnyk donated $1 million to the Belmont Child Care Association for the construction of a child care center at Belmont Park
. Called Anna House, it is named after one of his two daughters and the center is the first facility in the United States to be located on the grounds of a racetrack. The center provides child care for all families who work at Belmont Park regardless of their ability to pay for services. Many of the children belong to grooms, exercise riders and other behind-the-scenes racetrack employees. http://www.canada.com/story_print.html?id=1914265&sponsor= http://www.ntra.com/stats_bios.aspx?id=2051
and may soon face criminal charges. Allegations are that the company paid doctors incentives of up to $1000 to prescribe the Cardizem LA drug. It is currently uncertain whether Melnyk himself will be called to testify, or whether he will be personally named in the criminal charges because he held the position of Chairman and CEO at the time of the alleged crime.
Melnyk has also been accused by the Ontario Securities Division of illegal activities for his part in the inflation of the cost of Biovail stock from an estimated value of $2–4 million to $10–20 million to cover up losses.
Ukrainian Canadian
A Ukrainian Canadian is a person of Ukrainian descent or origin who was born in or immigrated to Canada. In 2006, there were an estimated 1,209,085 persons residing in Canada of Ukrainian origin, making them Canada's ninth largest ethnic group; and giving Canada the world's third-largest...
businessman who now resides in Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
. He is the current owner, governor, and chairman of the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
club of the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
(NHL). He also owns the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors
Mississauga St. Michael's Majors
The Mississauga St. Michael's Majors are a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League, based in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. The team was originally known as the Toronto St. Michael's Majors, whose hockey program was founded and operated by St. Michael's College School in 1906...
junior-age ice hockey club. He is the former chairman and CEO
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of Biovail Corporation and former owner of Trimel Corporation.
Business career
In 1982, Eugene Melnyk founded medical publishing company Trimel Corporation, which was sold to Thomson Publications in 1989. Melnyk then founded Biovail Corporation, a specialty pharmaceutical company, in 1989. During his time as chairman and CEO of Biovail, revenues grew from $19 million in 1995 to $1.067 billion in 2006. Melnyk retired from his position as Chairman and CEO of Biovail on June 30, 2007.On May 2011, the Ontario Securities Commission
Ontario Securities Commission
The Ontario Securities Commission is a regulatory agency which administers and enforces securities legislation in the Canadian province of Ontario...
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
banned Eugene Melnyk from senior roles at public companies in Canada, for five years and penalized him to pay $565,000. Earlier in the same year Melnyk had settled with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission
United States Securities and Exchange Commission
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is a federal agency which holds primary responsibility for enforcing the federal securities laws and regulating the securities industry, the nation's stock and options exchanges, and other electronic securities markets in the United States...
(SEC), agreeing to pay a civil penalty of $150,000 US and he had previously paid $1 million U.S. to settle other claims with the SEC.
Sports franchise owner
Melnyk's first sports franchise purchase was the St. Michael's MajorsMississauga St. Michael's Majors
The Mississauga St. Michael's Majors are a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League, based in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. The team was originally known as the Toronto St. Michael's Majors, whose hockey program was founded and operated by St. Michael's College School in 1906...
of the Ontario Hockey League
Ontario Hockey League
The Ontario Hockey League is one of the three Major Junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 15-20.The OHL also operates under the Ontario Hockey Federation of Hockey Canada....
, which he still owns. Until 2007, the club played at the St. Michael's Arena in Toronto, but has now relocated to Mississauga, Ontario
Mississauga, Ontario
Mississauga is a city in Southern Ontario located in the Regional Municipality of Peel, and in the western part of the Greater Toronto Area. With an estimated population of 734,000, it is Canada's sixth-most populous municipality, and has almost doubled in population in each of the last two decades...
. As there was a club already in Mississauga, the IceDogs, Melnyk purchased the IceDogs and resold them to move the Majors into the IceDogs home arena. The new ownership of the IceDogs has relocated the team to St. Catharines, Ontario
St. Catharines, Ontario
St. Catharines is the largest city in Canada's Niagara Region and the sixth largest urban area in Ontario, Canada, with 97.11 square kilometres of land...
and is now known as the Niagara IceDogs
Niagara IceDogs
The Niagara IceDogs are a major junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League based in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. The franchise was originally known as the Mississauga IceDogs and founded in 1996. The team was relocated to St. Catharines and played its inaugural season in the Niagara...
.
On August 26, 2003, Melnyk purchased the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
club of the NHL and their arena, Scotiabank Place
Scotiabank Place
Scotiabank Place is a multi-purpose arena, located in Kanata, a suburban district of Ottawa, Ontario. It is home to the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League. It has also hosted the Canadian University Men's Basketball Championship...
out of bankruptcy. He is the sole owner and holds the titles of governor and chairman.
On September 16, 2008, Melnyk proposed plans for an Ottawa Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
professional soccer team, and a new soccer-specific Ottawa Soccer Stadium
Ottawa Soccer Stadium
The Ottawa Soccer Stadium was a proposed open-air soccer facility in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was part of a proposal to bring a Major League Soccer franchise to Ottawa by the Ottawa Senators organization.-Proposal:...
.
Thoroughbred horse racing
Eugene Melnyk is the owner of Melnyk Racing Stables Inc. and Winding Oaks Farm in Ocala, Florida, a 1100 acres (4.5 km²) property on land that was formerly Tartan Farms and where such racing legends as Dr. FagerDr. Fager
Dr. Fager was an American a thoroughbred racehorse who had what many consider one of the greatest single racing seasons by any horse in the history of the sport. "The Doctor" was the only horse who ever held four titles in one year...
and Ta Wee
Ta Wee
Ta Wee was an American Thoroughbred Hall of Fame race horse bred at the Tartan Stable of William L. McKnight . Foaled on March 26, 1966, her sire was Intentionally, the American Champion Sprint Horse of 1959...
are buried. His racing and horse breeding
Horse breeding
Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in domesticated horses...
operations have more than 200 Thoroughbreds. All of the Melnyk racehorses are named after Barbados landmarks and carry the blue and gold national colours. Blue and gold are also Ukrainian national colours.
Melnyk was named a trustee of the New York Racing Association
New York Racing Association
The New York Racing Association, Inc. is the not-for-profit corporation that operates the three largest thoroughbred horse-racing tracks in the state of New York. It runs Aqueduct Racetrack in South Ozone Park, Queens, Belmont Park in Elmont, Long Island , and Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga...
in August 2003, a position from which he resigned in January 2007. He currently serves on the board of directors of the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation. Melnyk was a co-recipient of the National Turf Writers Association's 2002 Joe Palmer Award and has also been honored by the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association
Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association
The American Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association based in Lexington, Kentucky is a trade organization for Thoroughbred racehorse owners and breeders...
as national owners of the year in 2005, and he formerly sat on the TOBA board of directors.
In 1998, his colt Archers Bay
Archers Bay
Archers Bay was a Canadian Thoroughbred racehorse known for winning the first two legs of the 1998 Canadian Triple Crown. He was sired by Silver Deputy and out of the stakes-winning mare, Adorned, a daughter of the 1975 French Derby winner, Val de l'Orne.In the 1998 Canadian Triple Crown series,...
won Canada's most prestigious race, the Queen's Plate
Queen's Plate
The Queen's Plate is Canada's oldest thoroughbred horse race. It is run at a distance of 1¼ miles for 3-year-old thoroughbred horses foaled in Canada. The race takes place each summer in June or July at Woodbine Racetrack, Etobicoke , Ontario...
. Another highlight came in 2007 with the 3-year-old filly Sealy Hill
Sealy Hill
Sealy Hill is a Canadian Champion Thoroughbred racehorse. Owned and bred by Canadian businessman Eugene Melnyk and his wife, Laura, Sealy Hill was named for a village in the Melnyk's adopted home, Barbados. She was sired by 2001 American Horse of the Year, Point Given...
, who became the first filly to win the Canadian Triple Tiara, which legs include the $500,000 Woodbine Oaks
Woodbine Oaks
The Woodbine Oaks is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. Inaugurated in 1956, it is the premier event for Canadian-foaled three-year-old fillies and the first leg of the Canadian Triple Tiara series....
, the Bison City Stakes
Bison City Stakes
The Bison City Stakes is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. Held during first week of July, it is open to Canadian-foaled three-year-old fillies. Since the 1999 creation of the Canadian Triple Tiara, the race has been the second leg of the...
, and the Wonder Where Stakes
Wonder Where Stakes
The Wonder Where Stakes is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually since 1965 at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. Held during the end of July/first week in August, it is the third leg of Canadian Triple Tiara series for Canadian-foaled three-year-old fillies.Raced on Turf, the Wonder...
, since the series was inaugurated in 1999. Sealy Hill was awarded with triple Sovereign Award
Sovereign Award
The Sovereign Award is given annually since 1975 by the Jockey Club of Canada to the outstanding horses and people in Canadian Thoroughbred racing.The most prestigious award for horses is Sovereign Horse of the Year....
s--3-year-old filly, turf female and Canadian Horse of the Year. Melnyk also was a recipient of his first Sovereign Award as top owner.
Top racehorses include champion sprinter Speightstown, winner of the 2004 Breeders' Cup Sprint, Marchfield (2007 Breeders' Stakes), Flower Alley (2005 Travers), Pool Land (2006 Ruffian), Marley Vale (Test), Tweedside (Coaching Club American Oaks), Bishop Court Hill (Carter), Harmony Lodge (Ballerina), along with other graded stakes winners Indian Vale, Gouldings Green, Strong Hope, Host, Fisher Pond, Lodge Hill, Bovell, Pico Teneriffe, and Graeme Hall. Owns a substantial quantity of bloodstock and is standing stallions in Florida and Kentucky, including Speightstown (at WinStar Farm
WinStar Farm
WinStar Farm is an American Thoroughbred horse breeding and racing farm near Versailles, Kentucky. Formerly known as Prestonwood Farm, it was owned by Houston, Texas oilmen Jack, Art, and J. R...
), Strong Hope (at Claiborne Farm
Claiborne Farm
Claiborne Farm is a thoroughbred Horse breeding operation in near Paris, Kentucky. It was established in 1910, by Arthur B. Hancock, owner of Ellerslie Farm in Albemarle County, Virginia, and has been operated by members of his family ever since.-Owners:...
), and Flower Alley (at Three Chimneys Farm
Three Chimneys Farm
Three Chimneys Farm is an American thoroughbred race horse breeding farm in Midway, Kentucky established in 1972 by Mr. & Mrs. Robert N. Clay. Widely known as one of the world's preeminent horse farms, Three Chimneys has been home to a number of famous horses including U.S. Triple Crown champion...
), and Graeme Hall. In 2009 Harlington will stand at Hill 'n' Dale Farms
Hill 'n' Dale Farms
Hill 'n' Dale Farms is a thoroughbred race horse breeding farm in Canada and the United States. It was founded in 1960 in Aurora, Ontario in 1960 by John Sikura, Jr., who died mysteriously in an unsolved 1994 car fire. The Canadian operation is now run by his son, R. Glenn...
.
Business ventures
- Bert's Bar (Barbados) - http://www.bertsbarbados.com/
- Biovail Corporation (retired) - http://www.biovail.com/
- Ottawa SenatorsOttawa SenatorsThe Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
(Team) - http://www.ottawasenators.com/ - Providence Charitable Trust
- Providence Elementary and Secondary schools
- Winding Oaks Farm (Florida, USA)
- Mississauga St. Michael's MajorsMississauga St. Michael's MajorsThe Mississauga St. Michael's Majors are a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League, based in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. The team was originally known as the Toronto St. Michael's Majors, whose hockey program was founded and operated by St. Michael's College School in 1906...
(OHL Hockey Club) - Mississauga Ice Dogs (OHL Hockey Club)
Philanthropy
Eugene Melnyk is an Honorary Director of "Help Us Help the Children" and a benefactor of Tourette Syndrome Foundation of CanadaTourette Syndrome Foundation of Canada
The Tourette Syndrome Foundation of Canada is a Canadian voluntary organization based in Toronto, Ontario. It was formed in 1976, and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for those with or affected by Tourette syndrome through programs of education, advocacy, self-help and the promotion...
. Melnyk donated $1 million to the Belmont Child Care Association for the construction of a child care center at Belmont Park
Belmont Park
Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse-racing facility located in Elmont in the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, on Long Island adjoining New York City. It first opened on May 4, 1905...
. Called Anna House, it is named after one of his two daughters and the center is the first facility in the United States to be located on the grounds of a racetrack. The center provides child care for all families who work at Belmont Park regardless of their ability to pay for services. Many of the children belong to grooms, exercise riders and other behind-the-scenes racetrack employees. http://www.canada.com/story_print.html?id=1914265&sponsor= http://www.ntra.com/stats_bios.aspx?id=2051
Legal trouble
On February 1, 2008, it was revealed that Biovail Corporation was under investigation of a grand jury in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and may soon face criminal charges. Allegations are that the company paid doctors incentives of up to $1000 to prescribe the Cardizem LA drug. It is currently uncertain whether Melnyk himself will be called to testify, or whether he will be personally named in the criminal charges because he held the position of Chairman and CEO at the time of the alleged crime.
Melnyk has also been accused by the Ontario Securities Division of illegal activities for his part in the inflation of the cost of Biovail stock from an estimated value of $2–4 million to $10–20 million to cover up losses.