After the Senators' quick exit from the playoffs, Brady Tkachuk was asked on Wednesday about distractions, his season, and his future.
Senators captain Brady Tkachuk held his final media availability a little late this year, but he had an excellent excuse.
14 hours after the Senators' season ended on Saturday with a Game 4 loss to Carolina, his wife Emma gave birth to a healthy baby girl named Lyla. While everyone is doing well, Tkachuk says his son, Ryder, who's not even two yet, wants nothing to do with his new sister. But he is showing signs of progress in that area.
For Tkachuk, it's just the latest battle, and by far the most adorable one, in a season filled with battles.
First, it was the hand injury, then catching up, then it was the losing, then it was shooting down social media rumours, then it was the Olympic/Trump/White House stuff, then it was the discussion about how he isn't playing like 'the same Brady Tkachuk,' and finally, after a four-game sweep, now it's the dialogue about his future which has been turned up to 10 all over North America.
With all those battles, it's no wonder Tkachuk wore a camouflage ball cap to his Wednesday media session.
When asked about his future, Tkachuk admits that he's frustrated by the current tidal wave of questions about his future when he and the team have never said a single thing about wanting to part ways.
"I feel like I've answered this hundreds of times," Tkachuk said calmly. "I feel like I've never shown...I've never said... none of those things ever came out of my mouth, and quite honestly, it's just getting frustrating.
"It's becoming a distraction, and I have been fully committed to this team, to the city, and it's just becoming a distraction, frustrating to deal with."
Earlier this season, Travis Green famously labelled the outside distractions as "white noise," but in truth, it's been anything but. White noise is a constant, usually gentle sound that often helps people sleep.
But the noise in Ottawa has been jackhammers, barking dogs and air raid sirens.
Whatever you call it, Tkachuk was proud that the team went on a run, made the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and overcame all the distractions.
"I mean, there was a lot of it," Tkachuk said. "And at times, to be honest with you, it was frustrating to kind of deal with that. But I think our team just stopped listening and stopped really caring what other people said. All we cared about were the guys in the room, our effort, our attitude and our mindset.
"And it showed in how well we played that second half to get to the position of being in the playoffs, how we handled that, and how proud I was of the guys with me."
Tkachuk is two years away from being an unrestricted free agent and says he isn't sure why people keep asking about his next contract when he can't sign an extension for another year, and reiterated that he and the team have never said anything about his future being somewhere else.
"I've always believed in this team. I've always believed in playing for this city, and the city has always been good to me."
Obviously, Sens fans would love to hear their captain say, 'I'm staying in Ottawa forever, no matter what.' But no player is going to make a hard commitment on their long-term future this far away from free agency.
For one, it would annihilate their bargaining power in contract talks. Secondly, and Tkachuk didn't say as much, it stands to reason he'll want to see how the team progresses next season.
Tkachuk says he's keen to have his exit meeting with GM Steve Staios, another meeting that will be delayed. Staios is away scouting at the World U-18's, which are on right now. But Tkachuk has several things he looks forward to discussing.
"Just our normal conversations, usually at the end of the year, about our team and what he thinks, and what he thinks of my own game. I talked to Greener this morning, and I know we're gonna talk in a couple of weeks when we all decompress a little bit more.
"And for me, it's just having those conversations about our team, where we can improve, where I can improve, and all that other stuff."
Tkachuk says with another new baby at home, he's now officially in Dad mode, and he will not attend the World Championships next month.
As for all the speculation out there about his future, it feels like every NHL city has put up a Brady Tkachuk 'Most Wanted' poster outside its arena. In the moment, it may be a distraction, and it may be frustrating, but it's undoubtedly going to help Tkachuk with an even bigger payday in 2028.
Until then, Tkachuk and his fans had better get used to the jackhammers because they're going to keep getting louder.
Steve Warne
The Hockey News
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