If you are counting on Brady Tkachuk to be the focal point of your organization and the cornerstone on which it is built, you might be a little disappointed, and he might be a little overrated in that regard.
He’s a fantastic player, but he may not be the ideal primary centerpiece on a championship contender. And that’s OK. There are only a handful of those guys in the NHL. Probably less than 10, and it’s not a knock on somebody to say they’re not in that group.
Having said that, if you are looking at Tkachuk as the No. 2 or 3 option on your roster, that is where he will be at his best and most valuable. And that is the exact spot he is going to be in with the Florida Panthers now that he has joined forces with his brother, Matthew Tkachuk, and the return of a healthy Aleksander Barkov.
The Panthers paid a steep price, sending three first-round picks and a second-round pick to the Senators, including the first‑rounder they acquired for Mackie Samoskevich, but it is probably worth it for a Stanley Cup contender in win-now mode.
The Senators did fairly well for themselves in the trade, given the situation Tkachuk put them in (asking for a trade and only wanting to go to Florida), but the Panthers are still the big winners here and could be big winners during the season as a result.
Tkachuk is a great possession driver, scores at a top-line rate, and, like his brother, is one of the biggest pests in the league to play against. Those two, combined with Brad Marchand, Sam Bennett, and Radko Gudas, are going to make this one of the most annoying teams to play against in the entire league.
The Panthers were always poised for a bounce-back season with some better injury luck, and now they have another top-line player to help get them there.