The announced on Thursday afternoon that team owner Eugene Melnyk has been sick since mid-January and has been hospitalized for the past three weeks in urgent need of a liver transplant.The team has also reached out to the public in search of a potential donor after extensive testing of potential donors has not yet yielded a suitable donor.Here is the complete statement from the Senators regarding Melnyk's health and his current situation:This past season our fans witne sed the remarkable and historic rally of their Ottawa Senators to overcome the largest regular-season point deficit in National Hockey League history to succe sfully qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.During this spectacular comeback many of our fans noticed the unusual absence of the Senators number one fan and team owner, Eugene Melnyk.Mr. Melnyk has consistently remained very private on matters of a personal or family nature.Today, the club wishes to share with the hockey community and our fans that Mr. Melnyk has been sick and battling major health i sues since mid-January. Since then, his medical care and treatment have been the sole focus for him and his family.Mr. Melnyk was admitted to hospital three weeks ago as a result of the onset of liver-related complications. He has undergone a comprehensive medical a se sment and Brian Winters Jersey it has been determined that Mr. Melnyk is in urgent need of a liver transplant.Mr. Melnyks family has actively reached out to his close friends and broader family with the hope of identifying someone who could be a live liver donor. This proce s involves the removal of a portion of the living donors liver so it can be transplanted into the recipient patient.The liver is a highly resilient organ that can regenerate itself within 90-120 days and return back to its normal size, said Dr. Atul Humar, the Medical Director of the University Health Networks Multi-Organ Transplant Program. Any healthy adult between the ages of 18-55 years could be a potential live liver donor. To date, over 600 live liver donor transplants have been performed at the University Health Network. All donors have returned to normal lives with no restrictions.The Melnyk familys efforts have yielded a number of potential donor candidates who have been extensively tested. These efforts continue in earnest but have so far not yielded a suitable donor.The Melnyk family is extremely grateful to the world-cla s liver transplant teams at Toronto General Hospital who are a sisting with Mr. Melnyks ongoing care and medical treatment.The Senators organization and the Melnyk family are looking for any members of the public who may be interested in being a live liver donor. For more information on being a living liver donor you can acce s the University Health Networks Liver Donor Manual at: For anyone interested in being tested to determine if they would be a suitable donor the following form needs to be completed: The completed form can then be faxed to Toronto General Hospitals Living Donor A se sment Office at 416-340-4317.For those persons that have inquiries regarding being a donor, the Senators will have staff available to answer calls at 613-599-0100 until 9 p.m. this evening and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, May 15.The 55-year-old Melnyk has owned the Senators since August, 2003, when he purchased the team and its arena out of bankruptcy. During his ownership the Senators have qualified for the playoffs in eight out of 11 seasons and reached the Stanley Cup Final during the 2006-07 season, losing to the Anaheim Ducks.Melnyk's current illne s continues what has been a difficult year for the Senators off the ice.General manager Bryan Murray, who has already said that , announced . In April, during the team's first round playoff series with the Montreal Canadiens, a sistant coach Mark Reeds pa sed away at the age of 55 . Allen Iverson Jersey