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Brady Tkachuk suddenly available in Ottawa, headed for messy split with Sens

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Ryan Smitheram
May 27, 2024 (10:02)

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Photo credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports

According to The Athletic's Jeremy Rutherford, the Ottawa Senators are taking calls on the always controversial Brady Tkachuk and may move on from him this summer.

Tkachuk played hardball with the Senators and then General Manager Pierre Dorion until mid-October in 2021 when he finally signed a 7-year, $57.5M extension with the team. A month later, he was named captain and was considered a prominent building block for the Senators to get back to being a perennial playoff contender. Unfortunately, things have not gone as planned for Tkachuk and the Sens as they have yet to qualify for the playoffs and appear to be stuck in a constant cycle of rebuilding.

This past season, Tkachuk was involved in a lot of controversy around empty-net goals when he famously said he thought Ridly Greig taking a slapshot into the Toronto Maple Leafs empty net was funny, but then attacked New Jersey Devils captain Nico Hischier later in the season for guiding the puck into the Senators empty net as time expired.

Tkachuk has a no-movement clause that is set to kick in on July 1st for the final three seasons of his current contract and according to Rutherford, the Senators may want to get ahead of that so they do not run into the situation the Leafs are currently in with Mitch Marner and his ability to block any trade.

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«I think going back to that report last year, I think it was Whitney with Spittin' Chiclets, he said that Tkachuk could be available. I think perhaps there is something to it. I think obviously the Blues would have some interest. He's in that age bracket they continue to talk about and he's a dynamic player I think that he is likely available if it's not working out with Brady Tkachuk in terms of him wanting to be there and/or them being pleased with the job he's doing, I don't think they're trading him for picks and prospects."

At a cap hit of $8.2M for another three seasons, Tkachuk would provide the acquiring team with an all-around player, in terms of providing scoring, physicality, and being a pest. With the Sens stuck in a loop of rebuilding, it will be interesting to see whether Steve Staios decides that he is no longer part of the "core" going forward before his no-movement clause kicks in.

Previously on MapleLeafsDaily

Leafs beat reporter shares update on Martin Jones and the Maple Leafs

David Kampf becomes a quality trade chip after gold medal win

Highly controversial call bails out Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba

POLL
27 MAI \| 595 ANSWERS Brady Tkachuk suddenly available in Ottawa, headed for messy split with Sens Would you trade Mitch Marner for Brady Tkachuk?
Yes, he gives the Leafs what they need	355	59.7 %
No, he's too much of a headache	240	40.3 %
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