Brady Tkachuk’s departure is being underestimated in Ottawa

Marc-Olivier Cook
Brady Tkachuk’s departure is being underestimated in Ottawa
Credit: Andrea Cardin/NHLI via Getty Images

The Senators have decided to move on by trading Brady Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers.

The loss of their star player is likely to have an impact, as he was a crucial part of Ottawa's core.

The Sens acquired William Eklund in the days following the Tkachuk trade, but is that enough to adequately replace the player who wore the C on his jersey?

In the eyes of some, the answer is yes. But not everyone necessarily sees it that way.

I, for one, fall into the second group.

That said, I feel like the loss of Tkachuk is being somewhat underestimated in Ottawa… just as it was for the Leafs with Mitch Marner. Adam Proteau, who writes for The Hockey News, had this to say in a recent article:

The Senators are going to miss Tkachuk, especially since he's joining a rival in the Atlantic Division. But they've also lost valuable veterans like defenseman Nick Jensen, center Lars Eller, and left wing David Perron. – Adam Proteau

Um…

I get where that's coming from, in a way. Every team needs certain veterans around to help keep things in check. But…

But Lars Eller was playing on the team's fourth line in 2025–2026. As for Nick Jensen, he had a more low-key role on the defensive corps with the emergence of Jordan Spence and the consistent performance of Artem Zub.

And Perron was traded at the last trade deadline for a fourth-round pick… even though the Sens were still in playoff contention at the time.

No one is going to convince me that losing Tkachuk is any less significant than losing those three guys… 

Let's wait and see how this plays out because it's too early to draw any conclusions right now.

But, at the risk of repeating myself, the same thing happened to the Leafs last year: they lost one of their best players and weren't able to recover from it during the season.

And it might happen to the Sens, too…


In a Nutshell

– Note.

– Oh, really?

– I love it.

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