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Former Coach with 'Major Scoop' on Brady Tkachuk’s Future in Ottawa

Originally posted on NHL Trade Talk | Last updated Mar 15, 2026 11:55 AM ET

“I’m so disappointed. I was expecting a big hockey game from the Senators. I was expecting to see 20 raging guys on the ice,” former NHL coach Michel Bergeron said in a French-language report on Thursday. These comments come following a 3-2 loss on Wednesday, one that forward Tim Stutzle called “brutal,” but said they have to “move on”.

Bergeron added, “Tkachuk doesn’t want to play in Ottawa anymore, I’m telling you this as a major scoop…He didn’t even show up for the most important game of the season.”

There’s nothing definitive from the Senators or Tkachuk on this. Really, it’s just a coach claiming to have a gut feeling or some kind of knowledge on how upset Tkachuk is playing for a team that puts forth this kind of effort in meaningful games. This is more a hunch than anything concrete.

That said, Bergeron is not the first person to suggest that Brady might be looking for a way out.

The Senators have 17 games remaining in the season and they’re sitting outside the wild card playoff cut line with 75 points. They need to jump both the Columbus Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings (or Boston Bruins) to get in. The Senators picked up a big two points in a win over Anaheim on Saturday, but Tkachuk was held pointless.

This Is Still Nothing… For Now

Despite Bergeron’s comments, Tkachuk is still the Senators’ captain, playing games, and locked into his contract through the 2027-28 season. He’s under team control for at least two more full seasons after this one, and he’d become an unrestricted free agent in 2028 at age 28.

Tkachuk himself has shut down rumors like this multiple times, saying things like “has never crossed my mind.”

This is just speculation, not backed up by bigger sources.

This article first appeared on NHL Trade Talk and was syndicated with permission.

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