Brady Tkachuk Dismisses Senators Rumors in Nhl Hockey
Brady Tkachuk said the nhl hockey speculation about his future in Ottawa has become a distraction. The Senators captain made the comments at his end-of-season availability on April 29, 2026 after days of rumors about whether he wants to stay in Ottawa. He enters the fifth year of a seven-year, $57.56 million contract with two years left.
Brady Tkachuk and Ottawa
Tkachuk said he has been fully committed to the Senators and the city, and that the questions around his status have worn on him. “I feel like I’ve never said, or shown none of those things, and quite honestly it’s frustrating, it’s become a distraction.”
He added, “I have been fully committed to this team and this city, and it’s become frustrating to deal with.” The 26-year-old said he has answered the same questions “hundreds of times,” and that extension talk is still a year away.
Steve Staios on the rumors
General manager Steve Staios had already pushed back on the speculation on Monday, calling rumors of Tkachuk’s pending departure “nonsense.” That set up Wednesday’s availability as the first chance for Tkachuk to address the talk directly after he missed the earlier team session to be with his family for the birth of his second child.
The timing matters because Ottawa is coming off a season that swung sharply. On Jan. 6, the Senators were at the bottom of the Atlantic Division with a 20-16-5 record, then went 24-11-6 down the stretch to grab the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Carolina Hurricanes sweep
The finish still ended in disappointment. The Carolina Hurricanes completed a four-game sweep on Saturday to eliminate Ottawa, and Tkachuk was held off the scoresheet in all four games. He said of the series, “You want to be a playoff player, and for me it wasn’t good enough,” and, “I don’t think anybody is more frustrated with how everything went than me. At the end of the day, I didn’t play good enough.”
For Ottawa, the immediate issue is stability around a franchise captain drafted fourth overall in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. Tkachuk said he will talk with Staios when they sit down to discuss where the team stands, what needs to improve, and what he needs to improve as well.
