After the most unique and trying season of his professional career, Brady Tkachuk is embracing a new kind of chaos this summer — welcoming his newborn daughter, Lyla, into his family of four.
Tkachuk and his wife Emma welcomed Lyla early Sunday morning, just 14 hours after the Senators were eliminated from the playoffs on Saturday night. On Monday night, Tkachuk flew back to Ottawa for an exit interview with Travis Green on Tuesday morning and met the media shortly after.
“Well, I wish it didn’t start this early, wish I was still competing,” said Tkachuk of the summer that awaits him.
“It’s a chance to be a family of four and be a dad, and I got a taste of it [Monday] for a couple hours before my flight, and it’s going to be a lot of chaos. So, I’m excited about that, but for me it’s just using what I learned this year to be better, to get to a whole other level in my own game that I know I can get to. I know I believe in myself that I will get there. And just getting back to work, starting that process whenever it may be to, to be back in a better spot, physically, and mentally.”
Tkachuk said that the discourse around his future in Ottawa, online and in the media, has frustrated him. The 26-year-old still has two seasons left on his contract and won’t be eligible to sign an extension until July 1, 2027.
“I feel like I’ve said it — I don’t even know, like a hundred times at this point — that I mean, I’ve never said it, team’s never said it, I’ve always believed in this team, I’ve always believed playing for this city, and this city’s always been good to me,” said Tkachuk.
“The extension talk, it's just, like you said, it's a year away, so that's something that you physically can't even do anytime soon,” added Tkachuk, who said he will meet with Steve Staios after Staios returns from a scouting trip to the IIHF U18 World Championships to discuss his season, ways the team can be improved, and what he can do better as a player and captain.
“I mean, it's tough. Sometimes the algorithms, you can't even control it. You just see it. And honestly, for me, the way I kind of handle that at times is get off Twitter, and I feel like that's more of a prominent platform to see that stuff. And so for me, I just kind of made a decision to get rid of Twitter. And yeah, I mean, everyone has the right to their opinion, and a lot of that stuff, you just can't control it, what other people say. I know myself, what I believe in, what my values, what my morals, and what my intentions are, day in and day out, and that's all I can really focus on.”
So what is Tkachuk focusing on as he prepares for his ninth season in the NHL? He’s spoken over the years about how playing in games that matter — such as 4 Nations, the Olympics, and playoff games — are what drives him as a player. That’s why the sweep the Sens experienced in the first round — and being held off the scoresheet in that sweep — was particularly disappointing.
“I don't think anybody has more expectations than I have on myself. I mean, I think I've shown in the past that those are the games that I show up in and play well and leave an impact, and I don't think anybody's more frustrated with how everything went than me. At the end of the day, I didn't play good enough,” said Tkachuk.
“And I tried doing everything my power to get my game going, make an impact. It just felt like nothing was going, nothing was going in, nothing was going my way. But I live with that, and that's what's tough, as a player, for myself, I believe that I can be that guy, and I've always prided myself for that.”
Despite the disappointment of the way the season finished, Tkachuk did post his second-best season in terms of point-per-game average and some of his best defensive metrics ever. He said that his perspective on the defensive side of the game was affected by playing against Canada’s top line of Nathan MacKinnon, Macklin Celebrini, and Connor McDavid.
“I loved it. I love playing against the best players in the world. And for me, it's just getting better and getting, I guess, confidence I can do that on a day in, day out basis, and be confident my own game in that process, too. And I just love being on the ice against the best players, and I guess, seeing who can be the best player on the ice that night, I think that's always a fun challenge,” said Tkachuk.
“I can learn a lot from a guy like [Shane Pinto], a guy like [Claude Giroux], who’s done it his whole career. [Jake Sanderson], [Artem Zub], the guys that play against the top guys every given night, that I can learn from those guys in not just how they approach it, but how their game evolved… they all did a great job against those guys. So just building confidence in those positions is something that I want to continue to work on.”
Before he left the podium at Canadian Tire Centre, Tkachuk also wanted to address the Senators fanbase.
“I know, we haven't really talked about the fans at all, but I just want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for the sport that you guys have for our team, myself, my family all year. Really wish we could be playing for you guys still. You guys brought so much energy, so much joy to our team, that kind of makes it sting even more. But I just want to say thank you to all the fans, all the supporters, for always being there for us.”
