Yet another report surfaced on Monday suggesting that the Senators may be shopping captain Brady Tkachuk this summer.
Yet another report surfaced on Monday suggesting that the Senators may be shopping captain Brady Tkachuk this summer.
The Ottawa Senators need roster help this summer, and one of their most significant needs is to get tougher and more competitive. And yet, there are content creators and journalists out here who think it makes perfect sense for the Senators to trade away their hard-nosed, uber-competitive captain who, at 24, is just entering his prime and is locked up for four more years.
Here's the hockey headline last week on 101 ESPN in St. Louis:
"If the Ottawa Senators' Brady Tkachuk is being made available in Ottawa, (we discuss) why a big move like that wouldn't be completely out of the question and what kind of haul the Senators could get for Brady."
Actually, it is completely out of the question. Just stop.
Tkachuk is a Senator cornerstone with four years left on his contract. He isn't going anywhere anytime soon. If the Senators still haven't worked the kinks out, this might become a valid discussion in three years when Tkachuk enters the final year of his contract. Until then, the Senators are looking for more of what Tkachuk brings, not less.
When asked about the latest report, GM Steve Staios didn't mince words.
"Complete B.S.," GM Steve Staios told The Athletic on Monday. "We are building this team around Brady. His leadership and unique skill set are rare. There is absolutely no validity to it."
Staios would never say never, of course. Some team may show up and offer him the world. In 1988, Wayne Gretzky got traded in his prime for a king's ransom in cash, along with picks and players. The Dallas Cowboys completely remade their roster by trading away running back Herschel Walker.
But last week's suggestion in St. Louis that "maybe" Jordan Kyrou and Pavel Buchnevich would be enough for the Senators to part with their most beloved player isn't exactly a franchise-altering deal for Ottawa. Can you imagine trying to sell season tickets off that? "Uh, yeah. We traded away Brady. But, hey, we got Kyrou and Buchnevich."
Oh, boy. Where do I sign?
Tkachuk is the type of player everyone is looking for. Don't believe any of the nonsense out there that the Senators are actively shopping him.