According to TSN’s report on the Brady Tkachuk trade, the Florida Panthers have acquired Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk in a major deal that brings one of the NHL’s most forceful power forwards to South Florida.
The trade sends three first-round picks and one second-round pick to Ottawa: Florida’s No. 9 pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, Tampa Bay’s 2026 first-round pick, Florida’s 2027 second-round pick and a top-10 protected Florida first-round pick in 2029. The Tampa Bay selection had been acquired earlier Sunday when Florida sent Mackie Samoskevich to the Seattle Kraken.
A bold move for Florida
Tkachuk joins a Panthers team already built around a veteran core and familiar with ambitious roster moves. Four years after acquiring Matthew Tkachuk from Calgary, Florida has now added his younger brother without giving up a current roster player.
Brady Tkachuk, 26, spent all eight of his NHL seasons with Ottawa. He had served as captain for the past five seasons and leaves the Senators with two years remaining on the seven-year, $57.5 million contract he signed in October 2021.
Read also: Hall of Fame decision day arrives for Bergeron, Price and a crowded ballot
In the Panthers’ official announcement of the trade, general manager Bill Zito described Tkachuk as “one of the most physical and relentless forwards in the league.”
That profile explains much of the appeal for Florida. Tkachuk had 59 points, including 22 goals and 37 assists, in 60 regular-season games for Ottawa last season. Across his Senators career, he recorded 213 goals and 463 points in 572 regular-season games.
A reunion years in the making
The move also creates one of the NHL’s most compelling family storylines. Brady and Matthew Tkachuk will now be teammates at club level for the first time, after previously playing together for the United States.
As described by NHL.com’s report on the trade, the brothers played together at the 4 Nations Face-Off in 2025 and at the Milan Cortina Olympics earlier this year, where the United States won its first men’s Olympic hockey gold medal since 1980.
Read also: Spurs is adding Rashford to their summer transfer list
Matthew Tkachuk has already become one of the defining players of Florida’s recent era. Since arriving from Calgary in 2022, he has helped the Panthers reach three Stanley Cup Finals and win back-to-back championships in 2024 and 2025.
For Brady, the move brings him into a team with established stars such as Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart, Sam Bennett, Carter Verhaeghe, Aaron Ekblad, Gustav Forsling and Anton Lundell. It also places him in a market where the Tkachuk family already has deep ties.
Ottawa turns to the future
For Ottawa, the trade marks the end of a significant chapter. Tkachuk was drafted fourth overall in 2018 and became the face of a long rebuild, leading the team with his scoring, physical play and willingness to take on the hardest minutes.
Still, the size of the return gives the Senators flexibility. The package provides Ottawa with valuable draft capital and cap space at a time when the club is looking to reshape its roster after another early playoff exit.
Read also: Maresca gets first Man City test as Doku faces World Cup row
In the Associated Press report by Tim Reynolds, Senators general manager Steve Staios was quoted as saying the trade was “not a decision we took lightly.”
The deal leaves Ottawa with major assets to use, but also a difficult question to answer: how to replace a captain who had become the club’s emotional centre.
For Florida, the calculation is more immediate. The Panthers have added another elite, hard-edged forward to a group still built to contend. With both Tkachuk brothers now in the same dressing room, the pressure and attention in South Florida will only grow.
Read also: Hamilton looks ahead as F1 records fade into background
Read also: Scaloni's strategic substitution: Managing Messi for a second World Cup bid
