The hockey world was stunned on June 21 when news broke of Brady Tkachuk being traded to the Florida Panthers from the Ottawa Senators, fetching Ottawa a grand total of four draft selections — 9th and 25th in 2026, a top-10 protected first-round selection in 2029, and a second-round pick in 2027. 

Where this gets intriguing is the consideration of the picks regarding Ottawa’s future. The Senators made the post-season for the first time in seven years in 2025, though both last year and this year’s playoff runs ended in the first-round. Whichever players the team picks up at 9th and even 25th during this year’s draft will definitely become impact players — but only time will tell how long it takes them to. 

This is where the Vancouver Canucks come in. 

Vancouver has found their name embroiled in trade chatter throughout the past few weeks, with the names most mentioned being veteran players like Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser, and Jake DeBrusk. Some reports have even tied specific players to certain teams, such as Pettersson and the St. Louis Blues. 

One specific report from two weeks ago, made by Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen, suggested that the Senators had been interested in potentially acquiring DeBrusk. 

From the standpoints of both teams, especially now that Ottawa has a tidy crop of three first-round draft picks, a deal for DeBrusk would work pretty well. A consistent 40 to 45-point player, DeBrusk can chip in to Ottawa’s offence without having the expectation of being one of the team’s key pieces. 

In this scenario, the other trade Florida conducted on June 21 works decently in the Canucks’ favour. 

Prior to acquiring the younger Tkachuk, the Panthers flipped forward Mackie Samoskevich to the Seattle Kraken in exchange for the 25th pick, now Ottawa’s, as well as a conditional second-round selection in 2027. 

There are two obvious differences in what DeBrusk and Samoskevich could provide a different team with. 

For one, DeBrusk evidently demonstrates more of an immediate impact offensively. The forward was still able to put up back-to-back 40+ point seasons with the Canucks, even when they finished 32nd in the league this year. He’ll fit decently with the Senators’ window, which appears open now. 

Samoskevich, on the other hand, is much younger. A middle-six forward, the 23-year-old logged back-to-back 30-point seasons in the NHL since playing in his first full season in 2024–25. With youth comes the potential to become a big-time producer later on down the road — but for a team like Ottawa, having a proven goal-scorer is something that would help the Senators’ puzzle feel closer to completion. 

Where this impacts the Canucks is dictating the right package for a player like DeBrusk. If Ottawa is still interested, they’ve got a good chunk of assets they can now use to potentially acquire the Canucks winger, and maybe even another player, if it works well for both sides. When looking at what Samoskevich fetched Florida, it wouldn't be unreasonable to suggest that DeBrusk could also command a first-round pick from the Senators — likely 25th if not moved as part of a package. 

At the end of the day, however, as much as Vancouver would likely jump at the opportunity to grab another first-round pick in this year’s draft, the Senators will probably want to use the assets acquired in the Tkachuk package to make a big splash and acquire a bigger-impact player. If they do decide to go down the route of obtaining secondary pieces that can produce offensively, a trade with the Canucks for DeBrusk could be one to look out for. 

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.

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