Brady Tkachuk joined the Florida Panthers in a trade deal from the Ottawa Senators on Sunday, June 21, and an NHL insider revealed what had led to it shortly afterwards.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman spoke on the NHL Tonight show on the NHL Network about backroom dealings between captain Brady Tkachuk and the Senators in their offseason.

“Elliotte Friedman: Re Brady Tkachuk/Senators: They were given a list of four; Carolina, Florida, Minnesota, Vegas; it became pretty clear...Florida with his brother Matthew - NHL Tonight (6/21),” wrote the NHL Rumour Report account on X.

The NHL insider noted that Tkachuk, 26, decided to move on from the Senators after recently captaining the team and put in a trade request with four teams in mind.

The American forward reportedly listed the reigning Stanley Cup champions, the Carolina Hurricanes, finalists the Vegas Golden Knights, Central Division standout Minnesota Wild, and the Florida Panthers, for a move.

Since the Panthers had his older brother Matthew Tkachuk, it apparently persuaded him to enter them in the trade list and ultimately approve them as his destination, too.

Notably, in a report from Friedman published in Sportsnet on the matter, the move went through since Brady Tkachuk had a full no-movement clause in his contract with the Senators.

He is currently set to enter the last two seasons of his seven-year contract worth $57.5 million, signed with the Senators in October 2021. It will be taken over by the Panthers since the trade deal went through between them and the Senators.

Moreover, apart from his older brother’s presence, the two Stanley Cups in 2024 and 2025 could have been another major consideration for Tkachuk to join the Panthers.

What did Ottawa get in return for their captain Brady Tkachuk from Florida?

For trading their captain and forward Brady Tkachuk, the Senators received four separate draft picks from the Florida Panthers. It included the No. 9 pick and the No. 25 pick in the first round of the upcoming 2026 NHL Draft.

The Senators also received a conditional first-round pick in the 2029 NHL Draft and a second-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft from the Panthers.

Florida forwarded the No. 25 first-round draft pick for 2026 to the Senators after getting it from the Seattle Kraken for trading forward Mackie Samoskevich on the same day.

Bill Zito, the Panthers general manager, detailed certain characteristics of Tkachuk, which will help them get more out of their players and add to the depth of their roster.

“Brady [Tkachuk] is a dynamic competitor and one of the most physical and relentless forwards in the League,” he said, per NHL.com. “A proven leader and exactly the type of player we want in our locker room, he strives to make everyone around him better both on and off the ice.”

Tkachuk played 572 games for the Ottawa Senators in eight seasons and scored 463 points (213G / 250A). He led them to the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the last two seasons during his five-year tenure as captain, while scoring seven points (4G / 3A) in the 10 games.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Brady to South Florida to join our group as we continue our pursuit of championship hockey,” Zito concluded his statement on the American forward.

Is Brady Tkachuk’s arrival going to strengthen the Florida Panthers during the 2026-27 season and beyond? Tell us your opinion in the comments.

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Written by

Arjun Sharma

Edited by

Soheli Tarafdar