Giroux having 'a blast' with up-and-coming Senators

Claude Giroux and Brady Tkachuk were talking the other day about how they didn't have any pictures together, so the Ottawa Senators teammates tried to find one on the Internet.

Giroux typed their last names into Google, and the first photo that popped up was Giroux with … Keith Tkachuk.
It was taken Nov. 7, 2009, when Giroux played for the Philadelphia Flyers and Brady's dad played for the St. Louis Blues. It shows Giroux flying through the air, his body horizontal, after absorbing a blow at center ice.
"It was a dirty hit," Giroux said, smirking. "No. We definitely laughed about it."
There are two ways of looking at that: At 34, Giroux is old enough to have played against Brady's dad, who retired from the NHL a dozen years ago. At the same time, he's young enough to be playing well and helping an up-and-coming team.
Giroux leads the Senators with 14 goals, one ahead of the 23-year-old Tkachuk, entering their game at the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; TSN3, TSN5, RDS, ESPN+, SN NOW). He's on pace for 37 goals, which would be an NHL career high.
Tied for third with 10 goals each are 20-year-old Tim Stutzle, 22-year-old Shane Pinto and 24-year-old Drake Batherson.
Maybe they're keeping him young.
Giroux has 29 points in 31 games, tied with Batherson for third on Ottawa behind Tkachuk (36) and 25-year-old Alex DeBrincat (30). His face-off winning percentage is 61.8, third in the NHL among players who have taken at least 250 draws.
"Being able to play with him, it's pretty cool," Tkachuk said. "I remember watching him growing up."
Giroux, a first-round pick (No. 22) in the 2006 NHL Draft, had 900 points (291 goals, 609 assists) in 1,000 games for the Flyers from 2008-2022. He ranks second to Bobby Clarke in games, assists and points in Philadelphia history, and he's eighth in goals.
But with the Flyers rebuilding and his contract set to expire after the 2021-22 season, he was traded to the Florida Panthers on March 19, 2022.
Then the native of Hearst, Ontario, who played for Gatineau of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, came home by signing a three-year, $19.5 million contract with the Senators as an unrestricted free agent July 13.
"I didn't think I'd like it this much," he said. "I mean, these guys are …"
He paused, searching for the right word.
"They're all clowns," he continued, smirking again. "We have a lot of fun. We have no cliques. Everybody comes to the rink, and [we] do our job and work hard, and we have a really good time, so it's been a blast."

Giroux was captain of the Flyers from Jan. 13, 2013, until leaving for Florida, making him the longest-serving captain in their history. He has been a resource for Tkachuk, who became captain of the Senators on Nov. 5, 2021.
"Every day, I feel like I'm learning something new from him," Tkachuk said.
Sometimes, it's serious hockey stuff.
Sometimes, it's a savvy veteran move. Tkachuk said he saw a video of Giroux when he was with the Flyers facing the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Giroux looked like he was going to toss a puck to a Pittsburgh fan in warmup, but he was faking out a heckler.
"He said that the guy was just giving it to him," Tkachuk said.
Ha. Giroux fits right in with the Senators.
"Yeah, it's awesome," Batherson said. "He's the best. I mean, when I'm talking to him, I feel like I'm talking to a guy my age. He's been around for such a long time. He's got some unbelievable stories. He keeps it lose in there [and] at the same time shows up to work every day and [is] a great leader for us, so we're lucky to have him."
After a 6-12-1 start, the Senators are 8-3-1. Since Nov. 25, their .708 points percentage is tied with the New York Rangers and the Washington Capitals for seventh in the NHL. They're third on the penalty kill (85.4 percent), fourth on the power play (35.2 percent) in that span.
"At one point there, it didn't look too good for us, and we started putting a few games together," Giroux said. "We just have to keep being consistent in how we play, and if we're consistent, we're going to be in every game. And then it's about finding a way to win."
The Senators entered the season with the goal of making the playoffs for the first time since 2016-17. At 14-15-2, they're still far from contention, seven points behind the New York Islanders for the second wild card from the Eastern Conference.
But especially considering their start, they're heading in the right direction. That they are having fun is both cause and effect, and Giroux is a big part of it.
"I think that's one of the reasons also why we're starting to win games," Giroux said. "We're playing for one another."