The buzz around Ottawa just won’t go away.
Brady Tkachuk, the 26-year-old Ottawa Senators team captain, has two years remaining on a contract that pays him more than $8 million per season and his pact includes a no-movement clause. He was chosen by the Sens fourth overall in the 2018 NHL draft and has been a mainstay in the Ottawa lineup ever since.
That said, if the right deal comes along, and it sends the American-born forward back to the USA, I can’t believe he wouldn’t be thrilled to leave our nation’s capital.
Tkachuk seemed happiest this season after Team USA defeated Team Canada for Olympic gold in Italy. Can’t blame him for that. But he just didn’t seem to be the same player in Ottawa after the Winter Games.
Tkachuk was held pointless in the Carolina Hurricane’s four-game sweep of Ottawa in the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs. His staged fight with Carolina veteran Jordan Staal at the opening faceoff of Game 1 was absolutely meaningless, especially since the Canes gladly took the trade-off of losing a third-line forward for five minutes while Ottawa’s star skipper sat in the box for the same period of time.
“That’s about the only notable thing Tkachuk did in the series,” wrote Billy Heyen of The Sporting News.
Sure, at this time of year, lots of NHL stars are nursing aches and pains that go unreported. Tkachuk, with his rambunctious style of play, was undoubtedly among them. But the Sens needed much more from him in their brief playoff appearance — hurt or not — and they didn’t get it.
Meanwhile, rumours are rampant in Ottawa that Tkachuk wants out. He says that’s not the case and recently reaffirmed his commitment to the team and the town. Sens GM Steve Staios is equally adamant that Tkachuk is going nowhere.
Many in the hockey media remain unconvinced. Among them, former NHLer and popular hockey podcaster Paul Bissonnette.
“Not a chance he returns,” said Bissonnette following the Carolina broom job.
From a family standpoint, landing the younger Tkachuk in Florida where he and his older brother, Matthew, would undoubtedly relish the opportunity to play together again as they did so effectively in the Olympics would have to be a dream come true for the Tkachuk clan. But is it realistic?
“If you were to give Brady and Matthew Tkachuk a dose of truth serum, they would probably admit to this being the ideal scenario for both of them,” writes Austin Nivison of CBS Sports. “Everybody saw what the Tkachuk brothers could do together at the Olympics and there’s no doubt Brady fits in with the tenacious two-way style of hockey that Paul Maurice (Panthers head coach) wants his team to play.”
And, if it’s not Florida, there has to be other US-based teams that would jump at the opportunity to land a proven power forward like Tkachuk who is still four years south of 30. The asking price would be high, but in the right situation it could be worth the cost.
From the Ottawa perspective, trading Tkachuk at this point in his career could land the Sens a bevy of young talent and draft picks to add to an already rapidly improving lineup that appears to be on the way up. If the right offer came along and Tkachuk gave his OK, Staios would be obliged to consider what’s best for the organization.
Whatever happens, Sens fans should stay tuned for a very interesting off-season. One during which their team captain could bid adieu to Ottawa.
Or not.
GARRETT WAS COLOURFUL
The hockey world lost one of its most colourful characters with the death of Trenton native and former NHL goaltender John Garrett this week at the age of 74.
Born in Trenton in 1951, Garrett played Major Junior for the Peterborough Petes before embarking on a 15-year professional career including big-league stops in the NHL and its short-lived rival, the WHA. After his playing days, Garrett spent 40 years as an NHL TV analyst, first with Hockey Night in Canada, then Sportsnet.
In his broadcasting capacity, Garrett was known for his quick wit, candid observations and keen insights into the game. On the Sportsnet website, longtime producer Greg Shannon said Garrett was one of a kind.
“He was the most humble person I ever met,” said Shannon. “There’s no bad John Garrett stories. There just isn’t.”
