The Ottawa Senators’ 2025-26 season ended unceremoniously on Saturday when they were swept out of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs by the Carolina Hurricanes. Immediately, all eyes turned to captain Brady Tkachuk and his future with the team.
Just hours before the Senators’ Game 4 loss, NHL insider David Pagnotta joined “Hello Hockey” and stated that Tkachuk could be a trade candidate in the offseason. With two years remaining on his current contract at $8.2 million per season, Tkachuk may want a change of scenery coming off a second consecutive first-round exit.
“I think there’s a good chance the Sens explore trading Brady Tkachuk this summer,” Pagnotta stated. “I don’t think it’s exclusively to do with the fact that he plays in Ottawa. There are different parameters for him that have factored into his personal decision.”
Tkachuk, the No. 4 overall pick by the Senators in 2018, has spent his entire eight-year career with the organization. In 572 career games, he’s tallied 213 goals and 250 assists. Over the years, Tkachuk has developed into a strong two-way winger who uses his unique combination of physicality and skill to his advantage at both ends of the ice.
While battling injury in 2025-26, Tkachuk notched 22 goals and 27 assists in 60 games while posting an exceptional 60.5% expected goals share at five-on-five, per Natural Stat Trick. Tkachuk had a disappointing showing against the Hurricanes, failing to find the scoresheet in four games, but he did total seven points in six games against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2025 postseason.
If the Senators do put Tkachuk on the trade market, every other team in the NHL should be interested, but here are five teams that would be ideal fits.
Florida Panthers
Whenever a possible Brady Tkachuk trade gets brought up, the Panthers will inevitably be thrown into the conversation as a possible destination, and it’s not hard to see why. If you were to give Brady and Matthew Tkachuk a dose of truth serum, they would probably admit to this being the ideal scenario for both of them. Everyone saw what the Tkachuk brothers could do together at the Olympics, and there’s no doubt Brady fits in with the tenacious two-way style of hockey that Paul Maurice wants his team to play.
In most years, Florida probably wouldn’t have the assets to swing a trade like this, but an injury-riddled 2025-26 season changed that. The Panthers currently hold the No. 8 overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, and that could improve in the draft lottery. That pick would likely be the centerpiece of a trade for Tkachuk.
There are two possible speed bumps here. The first is money. The Panthers are projected to have just over $15 million in cap space this offseason, per PuckPedia, and they have zero goalies signed for next season. Can Florida solidify its goaltending and acquire Tkachuk? That could be tough. The bigger hurdle for the Panthers is that they play in the same division as the Senators, and it’s highly unlikely Ottawa would want to see Tkachuk several times a year with the possibility of a playoff matchup as well.
Chicago Blackhawks
The Blackhawks haven’t finished above .500 since the 2019-20 season abruptly ended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and their rebuild has been slow and painful. Chicago has several interesting pieces in place thanks to a bevy of premium draft picks, but it needs another established star at the top of the lineup, and Tkachuk would fit that bill. Tkachuk could ride shotgun with young superstar Connor Bedard, providing more defensive stability and physicality. A prolific forechecker, Tkachuk could retrieve pucks, get them to Bedard and get to the net front for high-value scoring opportunities.
PuckPedia projects Chicago will have $40.2 million cap space with which to work this summer, and The Athletic recently ranked the franchise’s prospect pool at No. 1. In short, the Blackhawks have the ammunition to make a deal happen. If there is even a hint that the Senators are willing to move Tkachuk, Chicago general manager Kyle Davidson needs to be on the phone.
Utah Mammoth
Few teams are in better position to make a big move than the Mammoth. Each member of their young core is signed for at least two more seasons, it has a front office that’s willing to be aggressive and ownership has already shown it will spare no expense to build a winner in Salt Lake City. That makes Utah a prime candidate to take a big swing at Tkachuk if he becomes available, especially since the team has a clear need in the top six. Replace Kailer Yamamoto or Lawson Crouse with Tkachuk, and the Mammoth start to look like a Stanley Cup favorite — not just a dark horse.
Due to an impending $9 million raise for center Logan Cooley, Utah will have less cap space than some other teams on this list at $14.2 million. That stated, there are no significant pending free agents on the roster, and the Mammoth have high-value assets at their disposal. The franchise owns its first-round pick in each of the next four drafts, and it boasts the No. 6 prospect pool, per The Athletic.
Philadelphia Flyers
In the midst of a terrific start to the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Flyers will probably want to build upon the success they’re having in Rick Tocchet’s first season behind the bench. As good as Philadelphia has been on defense this season, it has lacked a certain level of offensive firepower. Tkachuk could provide more scoring without sacrificing the defensive structure that Tocchet demands from his team. Watch how relentless this Flyers team is in all three zones and tell me Tkachuk wouldn’t be a perfect fit for what Tocchet and GM Danny Briere are building.
The Flyers have the money (nearly $40 million in cap space), draft capital (three first-round picks over the next two drafts) and prospect pool (No. 8) to make something happen. With budding stars Matvei Michkov and Porter Martone still on cheap entry-level contracts, Philadelphia has to strike while the iron is hot. If there is one reason the Flyers may not be a perfect suitor, it’s that their biggest offensive need is probably at center, but Tkachuk should be able to drive play without a high-end center next to him.
St. Louis Blues
The Blues aren’t on this list simply because Brady is the son of franchise legend Keith Tkachuk. That certainly doesn’t hurt, but this seems like a natural fit as the offseason approaches. On the ice, Tkachuk seems like an ideal forward in coach Jim Montgomery’s system. Tkachuk will play responsible defense, and he certainly isn’t afraid to go into the corners or get his nose dirty in front of the net on offense. The combination of Pius Suter and Tkachuk as a center-wing pairing could be a massive headache for opponents.
Thanks to some good business on the part of outgoing general manager Doug Armstrong at the trade deadline, the Blues own three first-round picks in the 2026 NHL Draft, and two of them are in the draft lottery. St. Louis will have $23.6 million in salary cap space this summer, but winger Dylan Holloway needs a new contract, and an aging blue line probably needs rejuvenating. Will the Blues be able to do all that and acquire Tkachuk? It might involve moving some money out, but St. Louis should be able to make everything work.
