Florida Makes Blockbuster Trade For Brady Tkachuk

Bill Zito’s work on Sunday wasn’t finished as news broke in the early evening that the Panthers had reached a deal with the Ottawa Senators for Captain Brady Tkachuk. It was the move I thought least likely to happen due to the Panthers’ need in net, but if there’s anything fans can count on, it’s that Zito is the man with a plan. The Cats did pay quite a bit in draft capital, sending back three first-round picks and a second-round picks, but most importantly, they didn’t move any roster players. Ottawa is getting the 9th & 25th overall picks in this year’s draft, a 2029 1st, and a 2030 2nd round pick. Last season Brady played 60 games for the Sens, putting up 22G & 37A, placing him just under a point per game. He consistently shoots around 10% with only three seasons below that mark.

The good thing is that Panther fans don’t have to wonder about proof of concept with the Tkachuks on the same line. They were effective with Jack Eichel at 4 Nations and at the Olympics. I imagine Brady will likely be on the second line with his brother and Sam Bennett during the season. As to what Florida’s special teams will look like, that’ll be anybody’s guess with the forward group they have. Brady being 26 does bring up the age a bit, as Samoskevich was only 23, but the Panthers are clearly in “win now” mode to capitalize as much as possible on the Cup Window they have. The move is less surprising in a way because Matthew and Brady have expressed wanting to play with each other on the same NHL team. It’s not completely out of the blue for the trade to happen after they got a taste of it the last two years on Team USA.