Player Discussion Brady Tkachuk (LW) - Part XI

[Ice-Tray]

we should be happy...we would have been playing 2 weeks without Norris and Pinto ...

This is a good point.

 

[Oscar The Grouch]

Brady taking this game off has set up the stakes for the remainder of the season. He looked very disinterested in the month leading up to the 4 Nations Cup. Especially when you look at how he played during that tournament.

It's put up or shut up now for Brady. Either he is a significant contributor to a playoff-bound Sens team, or he is traded for a huge haul during the off-season and booed every time he visits the arena as a member of the road team.

 

[DueDiligence]

Brady taking this game off has set up the stakes for the remainder of the season. He looked very disinterested in the month leading up to the 4 Nations Cup. Especially when you look at how he played during that tournament.

It's put up or shut up now for Brady. Either he is a significant contributor to a playoff-bound Sens team, or he is traded for a huge haul during the off-season and booed every time he visits the arena as a member of the road team.

If Brady is "disinterested" its because he's playing with a bunch of gutless pukes that don't seem to give a crap. There are a number of guys on this team that play well when nothing is on the line but then don't show up when the other team raises their game.
Trading Brady would be doing him a favour.

 

[Crosside]

If Brady is "disinterested" its because he's playing with a bunch of gutless pukes that don't seem to give a crap. There are a number of guys on this team that play well when nothing is on the line but then don't show up when the other team raises their game.
Trading Brady would be doing him a favour.

For the Sens yes

 

[DueDiligence]

For the Sens yes

Yup guys like Batherson and Chabot are all heart. The other guys will follow them anywhere.

 

[DackellDuck]

If Brady is "disinterested" its because he's playing with a bunch of gutless pukes that don't seem to give a crap. There are a number of guys on this team that play well when nothing is on the line but then don't show up when the other team raises their game.
Trading Brady would be doing him a favour.

In the 15 games prior to 4Nations, Tkachuk had 3 goals and 6 points. Games would go by where he wasn’t noticed. There were many GDTs with people wondering if he was hurt.

Thank goodness Merilainen played like a rockstar otherwise our season would have gone off the rails.

The he goes to the tournament and plays absolute balls to the wall. In a tournament of superstars, he looked like a top 3 player. And Brady made no bones about how excited he was to play with his brother and represent the USA, and even said after the game on Thursday that from a hockey perspective, he “can’t see anything topping that tournament for him for a while.”

Not exactly what you want to hear as a Sens fan.

Then he gets back to Ottawa, the team is missing two top 6 players, has lost 3 in a row, is playing a division rival at home and he… can’t go? He didn’t miss a shift on Thursday. He was throwing his body around until the last shift in overtime.

It’s not a great look. It seems like he was playing not to get hurt before the tournament so he could go, and was more interested in representing America than the playoff chase in Ottawa.

Let’s be honest here. If it was Erik Karlsson… he would have been ripped to shreds by much of the fanbase.

 

[Agent Zuuuub]

In the 15 games prior to 4Nations, Tkachuk had 3 goals and 6 points. Games would go by where he wasn’t noticed. There were many GDTs with people wondering if he was hurt.

Thank goodness Merilainen played like a rockstar otherwise our season would have gone off the rails.

The he goes to the tournament and plays absolute balls to the wall. In a tournament of superstars, he looked like a top 3 player. And Brady made no bones about how excited he was to play with his brother and represent the USA, and even said after the game on Thursday that from a hockey perspective, he “can’t see anything topping that tournament for him for a while.”

Not exactly what you want to hear as a Sens fan.

Then he gets back to Ottawa, the team is missing two top 6 players, has lost 3 in a row, is playing a division rival at home and he… can’t go? He didn’t miss a shift on Thursday. He was throwing his body around until the last shift in overtime.

It’s not a great look. It seems like he was playing not to get hurt before the tournament so he could go, and was more interested in representing America than the playoff chase in Ottawa.

Let’s be honest here. If it was Erik Karlsson… he would have been ripped to shreds by much of the fanbase.

erik karlsson would have played though

 

[Relapsing]

.

 

[Oscar The Grouch]

If Brady is "disinterested" its because he's playing with a bunch of gutless pukes that don't seem to give a crap. There are a number of guys on this team that play well when nothing is on the line but then don't show up when the other team raises their game.
Trading Brady would be doing him a favour.

Brady is the captain. He has to lead by example. His "interest" in winning cannot be conditional on the perceived effort of guys around him.

Period.

 

[JungleBeat]

erik karlsson would have played though

Karlsson was a soldier that put everything out on the ice. Tkachuk just can’t maintain that work ethic.

 

[frightenedinmatenum2]

I am mad at the NHL.The timing of the tournament was clueless. Why play a tournament when teams are making the push for the playoffs in late February.
Clearly you play a tournament like that before the season begins from September 18 to September 30. The World Series Playoffs would have not started yet. You let them go to training camp for a few days ( or not at all) to practice with their home teams around September 15, then go off to and represent their countries in the 4 Nations Cup. None of those players would be playing in the exhibition season games until the very end of the preseason anyways. So it's not like they are needed at training camp.
Then they would report back after the 4 Nations Cup to play an exhibition game or two and then start the regular season around October 11. So the injured players would have some time to heal and if they missed time at the beginning of the season at least it's not during the playoff push.

Business wise, the tournament was one of the most successful things the league ever did.

I'm annoyed too, but it made perfect sense. Screwing up the momentum of the Senators is just a fringe benefit for the league. The tournament was an incredible success.

 

[DackellDuck]

As we’ve all experienced, there’s just no timetable for a broken heart.

 

[5ive4Fighting]

To be fair to the league, none of the events that turned the tournament up to 11 could have reasonably been foreseen. And maybe Brady played hurt like Charlie Coyle played hurt - i.e. he shouldn’t have been allowed to, and now the right decision is being made.

We are all anxious about the season. Fans, players, ownership, staff etc. We gotta pull in the same direction.

 

[5ive4Fighting]

There was this one camera shot where BT was absorbing the loss immediately after. And he briefly nodded, seemingly to no one. It felt to me like an acceptance that the hockey gods had other business for this one. I don’t really have a point, and my interpretation could be way off. It was just a striking moment and it has stuck with me.

 

[PlayOn]

In the 15 games prior to 4Nations, Tkachuk had 3 goals and 6 points. Games would go by where he wasn’t noticed. There were many GDTs with people wondering if he was hurt.

Thank goodness Merilainen played like a rockstar otherwise our season would have gone off the rails.

The he goes to the tournament and plays absolute balls to the wall. In a tournament of superstars, he looked like a top 3 player. And Brady made no bones about how excited he was to play with his brother and represent the USA, and even said after the game on Thursday that from a hockey perspective, he “can’t see anything topping that tournament for him for a while.”

Not exactly what you want to hear as a Sens fan.

Then he gets back to Ottawa, the team is missing two top 6 players, has lost 3 in a row, is playing a division rival at home and he… can’t go? He didn’t miss a shift on Thursday. He was throwing his body around until the last shift in overtime.

It’s not a great look. It seems like he was playing not to get hurt before the tournament so he could go, and was more interested in representing America than the playoff chase in Ottawa.

Let’s be honest here. If it was Erik Karlsson… he would have been ripped to shreds by much of the fanbase.

If the Senators had a 4 game schedule to win the Stanley Cup, I’m sure he’d play like that too.

Of course to win a SC, you have to play 100+ games in a season and it is impossible for him to play like he did on a consistent basis. This is the same guy who tied the NHL record of hits in a game in a lost season for us. He mentioned how dead he was the next day. And the same guy who has missed barely any games in 7 years. The idea that he phones it in is weird to me - he has another gear, we do see it, but he can’t sustain it. He wouldn’t sustain it for much longer with team USA either.

Also just because he didn’t miss a shift on Thursday, doesn’t really mean he was fit to play. Guy might have been taking injections before the game and during intermissions to get through it for all we know. At some point he has to let whatever it is heal.

 

[DackellDuck]

If the Senators had a 4 game schedule to win the Stanley Cup, I’m sure he’d play like that too.

Of course to win a SC, you have to play 100+ games in a season and it is impossible for him to play like he did on a consistent basis. This is the same guy who tied the NHL record of hits in a game in a lost season for us. He mentioned how dead he was the next day. And the same guy who has missed barely any games in 7 years. The idea that he phones it in is weird to me - he has another gear, we do see it, but he can’t sustain it. He wouldn’t sustain it for much longer with team USA either.

Also just because he didn’t miss a shift on Thursday, doesn’t really mean he was fit to play. Guy might have been taking injections before the game and during intermissions to get through it for all we know. At some point he has to let whatever it is heal.

I don't think he phones it in, certainly not.

But I think he really wanted to be on that American team, and once he got there, really wanted to win the tournament. And in order to do that, he was willing to risk putting the Senators in a worse position down the stretch.

If the injury he suffered in the Sweden game was that bad that he wasn't fit to play through it and risked making it even worse, he shouldn't have played against Canada. If it wasn't that bad, he should've sucked it up (again) and played tonight.

They don't play again until Wednesday.

 

[Pierre from Orleans]

There was this one camera shot where BT was absorbing the loss immediately after. And he briefly nodded, seemingly to no one. It felt to me like an acceptance that the hockey gods had other business for this one. I don’t really have a point, and my interpretation could be way off. It was just a striking moment and it has stuck with me.

Was he at the arena? I must have missed it during the game.

 

[PlayOn]

I don't think he phones it in, certainly not.

But I think he really wanted to be on that American team, and once he got there, really wanted to win the tournament. And in order to do that, he was willing to risk putting the Senators in a worse position down the stretch.

If the injury he suffered in the Sweden game was that bad, he shouldn't have played against Canada. If it wasn't that bad, he should've sucked it up (again) and played tonight.

I think that’s a strange assumption. He played a fantastic game against Minnesota not long before the tournament off the top of my head, and he has barely ever missed a game. Of all the people to think “I should take it easy so I don’t get hurt”, I’d have to think Brady is one of the last people to worry about that.

If the injury was that bad and playing wasn’t a risk to further injure it, it doesn’t make a huge difference - he’d still be out tonight.

Guys like McDavid, Eichel, Matthew Tkachuk - who have played at the biggest possible stage in the NHL - equated that game to the SCF. Nobody on those rosters was skipping that game unless they physically could not play. People can get mad at Brady but the next captain would do the same thing because these players all placed a huge level of importance on the tournament.

 

[DackellDuck]

Guys like McDavid, Eichel, Matthew Tkachuk - who have played at the biggest possible stage in the NHL - equated that game to the SCF. Nobody on those rosters was skipping that game unless they physically could not play. People can get mad at Brady but the next captain would do the same thing because these players all placed a huge level of importance on the tournament.

McDavid, Eichel and M.Tkachuk are on teams that are comfortably in the playoffs.

Brady is on a team that hasn't made it in 7 seasons and is finally in a (very crowded) wild card race. He's the captain of that team, and they've bet their future success on him.

The context is much different.

You're right, Brady can absolutely choose what's the most important for himself. It's his career.

But Sens fans can certainly question him, and if he misses much more time, can be pissed off at him.

We'll see what version of Tkachuk we get when he's back. But if he's compromised, can't contribute what he needs to and we miss the playoffs, he deserves all the criticism he gets. The "nothing is more important than winning in Ottawa" quote will ring real hollow.

 

[DackellDuck]

On the Brady's future conversation, this is what Big Walt said on the Missin' Curfew podcast:

“They’re in the (playoff) mix,” Tkachuk told the Missin Curfew podcast around the 26-minute mark. “I think Ottawa has to be in a position to be a buyer, to help these guys out, to get them some more help. And that’s what I expect from them. And I expect them to be in the playoffs.”

Stevey Staios likes to be patient and steady, and Garrioch has reported that there won't be much activity from us other than maybe something on the periphery... so is the "that's what I expect" an ultimatum? If you don't go for it now, it's not Brady's fault when you miss, and why should he stay there if you aren't willing to push some chips in?

Before Florida's first SCF run a couple years ago, Keith went on Toronto radio and called their team soft. The roster responded.

This time it seems he's calling out our management group. Will we respond?

 

[PlayOn]

McDavid, Eichel and M.Tkachuk are on teams that are comfortably in the playoffs.

Brady is on a team that hasn't made it in 7 seasons and is finally in a (very crowded) wild card race. He's the captain of that team, and they've bet their future success on him.

The context is much different.

You're right, Brady can absolutely choose what's the most important for himself. It's his career.

But Sens fans can certainly question him, and if he misses much more time, can be pissed off at him.

We'll see what version of Tkachuk we get when he's back. But if he's compromised, can't contribute what he needs to and we miss the playoffs, he deserves all the criticism he gets. The "nothing is more important than winning in Ottawa" quote will ring real hollow.

If he’s compromised, how does one assume that is because he played on Thursday and not just because he got hurt period? These are just assumptions based on no information whatsoever.

That quote is PR fluff anyway, we all know this. I am just not sure how without any context of what the injury is, what that game did or didn’t do to help it, expected recovery time etc anyone can determine he should wear the blame. For all we know the doctors told him it would have no impact on his recovery time to play.

 

[DackellDuck]

If he’s compromised, how does one assume that is because he played on Thursday and not just because he got hurt period? These are just assumptions based on no information whatsoever.

That quote is PR fluff anyway, we all know this. I am just not sure how without any context of what the injury is, what that game did or didn’t do to help it, expected recovery time etc anyone can determine he should wear the blame. For all we know the doctors told him it would have no impact on his recovery time to play.

But again, if the injury is such that he can play through it (and it clearly is, since he did play on Thursday, and did so quite well), why didn't he play through it, again, tonight? Whatever pain management he did... do it again.

Thursday was a massive game for US Hockey. These 26 games coming up are massive games for the Senators organization. And after tonight, it's a rough start to the most important stretch this team has seen since Karlsson was leading the charge in 16/17.

The attitude should be that unless my leg is falling off, I want to be out there so we can put an end to these 7 years of utter futility. Every 2pts in the bank matters.

 

[ottawagm]

On the Brady's future conversation, this is what Big Walt said on the Missin' Curfew podcast:



Stevey Staios likes to be patient and steady, and Garrioch has reported that there won't be much activity from us other than maybe something on the periphery... so is the "that's what I expect" an ultimatum? If you don't go for it now, it's not Brady's fault when you miss, and why should he stay there if you aren't willing to push some chips in?

Before Florida's first SCF run a couple years ago, Keith went on Toronto radio and called their team soft. The roster responded.

This time it seems he's calling out our management group. Will we respond?

We have no cap space, so he better be open to losing one of Norris/Chabot/Batherson.

 

[DackellDuck]

We have no cap space, so he better be open to losing one of Norris/Chabot/Batherson.

That sounds like a Steve Staios problem, not a Keith Tkachuk problem.

If the Tkachuk camp wants the team to add, and they don't add, I don't think the "well I put myself in a situation where I had no cap space at the deadline" explanation is going to get them to say "oh okay no biggie then."

GMs of capped teams are creative all the time. How often do you see 3 team trades with double retention? Happens pretty regularly at the deadline.

 

[albator71]

If Brady is "disinterested" its because he's playing with a bunch of gutless pukes that don't seem to give a crap. There are a number of guys on this team that play well when nothing is on the line but then don't show up when the other team raises their game.
Trading Brady would be doing him a favour.

And Tkachuk is one of those "gutless puke" he's on pace for only 63 pts this season, this team needs more from their captain. If this team misses the playoffs again it's time to ship him out.