Brady Tkachuk back to his old self with fight, goal in Senators win

OTTAWA – On paper, Brady Tkachuk looks like he’s having a great season, but the Ottawa Senators captain hasn’t always been at his best.

With 19 goals and 28 assists through 48 games, Tkachuk is producing at a point-per-game pace, but the edge that makes the left winger so dominant hasn’t been as evident this season.

Tkachuk missed 20 games after suffering a thumb injury that required surgery just three games into the regular season.

When Tkachuk returned to action he was physically healthy but unable to fight, forcing the captain to play a different style of game.

Tkachuk said there’s been a lot to digest this season. He dealt with the injury, competed at the Olympics, rode the high of winning gold for Team USA, returned to Ottawa and then headed out west for an extended road trip. It was a whirlwind of emotions to deal with.

But Thursday night Tkachuk was back to his old self. He dropped the gloves against New York Islanders captain Anders Lee setting the tone for the Senators (35-24-9).

Tkachuk continued to be a force throughout the game, crashing the net, playing physical and with 11.1 seconds remaining in regulation scored the winner to lead Ottawa to an important 3-2 victory.

“I needed to be a lot better today to help this team,” said Tkachuk. “I think you can look at everybody on this team. Everybody had a statement game.”

The Senators are fighting for a playoff spot and can ill afford bad nights with the standings being as tight as they are. Even with the win, Ottawa sits five points out of the last wild card.

“It’s just too important a year to not be at my best,” Tkachuk said. “But for me, I just tried setting the tone.”

Tkachuk said that being unable to fight when he returned from injury was an adjustment and then he almost got used to it, but knew it was time to get back to his old self.

The catalyst for the fight was a need to rid himself of anger he had been holding on to.

Having ditched the protective tape he had been wearing when he returned from the Olympics and the thumb feeling good Tkachuk made a conscious decision Thursday afternoon to drop the gloves.

“You get this rush that you can’t really explain, and I just tried carrying it through the whole game,” Tkachuk said.

Tkachuk’s actions had an immediate impact on his teammates.

“To see him step up like that and set the tone for us, it means a lot,’ said Thomas Chabot. “He’s our guy on our team, and he got the ball rolling for us.”

As a newcomer to the Senators, goaltender James Reimer said there’s no denying Tkachuk’s impact.

‘I think the city and the fans are extremely blessed to have a guy like that leading your team, just what he brings, you know, every day and the integrity he brings to his game and to the ice is impressive,” said Reimer. ‘When your leader plays with that kind of passion and physicality and then ability to score it’s somebody you just want to get in line and follow them.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 20, 2026.