Unreal.
Unbelievable.
Remarkably true.
Brady Tkachuk is no longer an Ottawa Senator.
Strolling along through social media on a quiet Sunday afternoon, the news hit like a hammer – Brady Tkachuk was being dealt. No build-up, no ‘sources say,’ just the facts, Jack.
What a wallop for Ottawa fans.
Given that, here’s a look at the good and bad of the deal.
WHAT’S GOOD ABOUT THE TKACHUK TRADE:
The Ottawa Senators are in dry-gulch territory regarding their prospects and draft capital.
Frankly, there is/was not much there. So, landing three first-round picks definitely helps (Nos. 9 and 25 this season, another in 2029 that is top-10 protected, and a second-rounder in 2027). Now it’s up to Steve Staios and his crew to draw some significant blood from those choice selections.
Honestly, the Tkachuk trade rumblings had become annoying. There was much smoke there, persistently, and now finally the fire. Talk of Tkachuk being traded has/had been a consistent distraction for the last two seasons. Did he want a trade; did he want a fresh start? Ottawa Fan got it in spades.
Here’s Brady a few weeks ago – “I feel like I’ve answered this hundreds of times,” Tkachuk said when asked about his future in Ottawa. “That none of that, I’ve never shown, I’ve never said, none of those things ever came out of my mouth. Quite honestly, it’s just getting frustrating. It’s becoming a distraction. I have been fully committed to this team, this city.”
Right then.
So, with his departure, are the Senators in full rebuild right now?
Somewhat.
The core pieces of Jake Sanderson and Tim Stutzle remain in place. If they were a sandwich, the bread remains in place, but the meat in the middle has checked out. Ottawa is in an in-between stage.
But let’s face the facts – the Senators were miles away from winning a Stanley Cup with Brady aboard (not his fault). Credit GM Steve Staios for realizing his team, as it stood a day and a bit before, was not close to measuring up to Carolina, or Vegas or another five or six teams.
Playing ‘average’ hockey to pacify the fan base might hold water in other markets, but not so much in Ottawa where the ticket-buyers kind of roll with the tide: “If you stink, or if you’re middle of the pack even, I’m not stepping up to buy tickets.”
Winning is what counts.
Are they closer to a title than where they were prior to the Brady deal?
Nope.
But the future and the landscape have been altered. With the picks and the hope that they yield a couple of treasures, Ottawa is in a good place . . . dependant on the scouting staff doing its work.
WHAT’S BAD ABOUT THE TKACHUK TRADE:
Lots.
Former GM, the guy you guys love to despise, Pierre Dorion smacked a grand slam back in 2018 by selecting Brady with the 4th-overall pick. He didn’t take Filip Zadina, who was overwhelmingly the fans’ pick, and he moved quickly past Marc Bergevin’s surprise No. 3 selection for Montreal (a firing offence if I’ve ever seen one) in Jesperi Kotkaniemi.
Folks loved to troll on young Brady, saying his skating was basically horrible and he’d be nothing more than a 4th-liner.
Eight years later?
He’s the top power forward in the entire circuit and is No. 2 in points from that 2018 draft, just behind Quinn Hughes.
But here’s what really stings for you, Ottawa Fan – Brady was the guts of your franchise. He’d fight, he’d lead, he’d score, he’d reach Wendel Clark-esque heights (who also got dealt, back in the day) in that Ottawa uni.
And now?
Who steps up?
Dead air . . .
There are not a whole heckuva lot of unicorns – like Brady – in the NHL. A baffling swap here.
If you previously didn’t hate on Florida and its Panthers . . . here we go. One Tkachuk was making things miserable enough (Hi Matthew), two makes it insufferable. We don’t know yet when Florida will visit the CTC. Guaranteed it’ll be a sell-out.
The Panthers have now surpassed Toronto and Montreal in the ‘hate’ category.
Brady Tkachuk was the pulse and the heart of your Senators. Now he’s gone.
SYNOPSIS:
Not sure how this unfolded, but Ottawa got fleeced.
Draft picks are lovely things. The trouble is, you HAVE to turn them into marketable talent. Maybe in 5-10 years we’ll see the fruits of their labour, but quite honestly, you’ve just ripped the heart and soul out of your team.
Looks like Brady more or less asked to be moved, so that’s understandable.
But still, when you examine the history of this franchise, the exit door has ruled over the entrance.
Erik Karlsson, Mark Stone, Daniel Alfredsson and now Brady Tkachuk.
Welcome to the reality and insanity of small-market hockey.
hegrossgame@yahoo.com
Photo: Courtesy CBC
