George Gillett Jr.

The Canadiens' release on the agreement in principle between George N. Gillett Jr. and brothers Geoff, Andrew and Justin Molson:

Life keeps getting rosier for George Gillett. Le Journal de Montréal reports that Stephen Bronfman and Joey Saputo, members of two of Montreal's wealthiest families, together have tabled a bid of $450 million, the richest to date, to purchase the Canadiens and the Bell Centre.

Geoff Molson and his brothers, Andrew and Justin, confirmed today that they have made an offer to purchase the Canadiens, the Gillett Entertainment Group and the Bell Centre.

The offer was delivered to team owner George Gillett Jr.

“We have assembled a very solid and credible group of investors and financial institutions as part of our offer,” Geoff Molson, who is the group leader, said in a statement. “They are all dedicated to the long-term success of the Canadiens and have a strong presence in Quebec.

“We think our offer has all the ingredients to be well received by the potential seller and the National Hockey League. We look forward to meeting with them at their earliest convenience.”

Molson said he would not comment any further on the offer, in order to respect the confidentiality agreement binding the parties involved in the process.

Read below for Quebecor's release on their bid:

How can the Canadiens season get any weirder than it already has?

• Talk of sale swirls around struggling Habs
• More important things to worry about, players say
• Reeling Habs dealt another serious blow: Fisher
• Canadiens leave Montreal? Impossible, mayor says
• From Dec. 4: Gillett denies sale rumours
• Fans lapping up centennial coins
• Hopes for the Stanley Cup in Montreal after all: Boone

Réjean Tremblay of La Presse reports this morning, confirmed by Canadiens president Pierre Boivin, that Habs majority owner George Gillett Jr. has engaged a number of financial firms, including North America's BMO Capital Markets, to study all of his global holdings.

Gazette update is here.

In these precarious economic times, it is part of a strategy on the part of Gillett to examine his entire portfolio, which includes the Liverpoool soccer team, NASCAR, the Canadiens and Bell Centre, the Gillett Entertainment Group as well as food businesses, golf courses and ski resorts.

"We're speaking of capitalization, financial restructuring, new investors or the sale of businesses," says Boivin, who suggests that Gillett is open to all possibilities. "The work has begun, but we're still in the early stages."