Brady Tkachuk's Return This Friday Won't Overshadow How Well The Senators Responded In His Absence

In case you missed it, the breaking news in Sens Nation is that Brady Tkachuk is going to be back in the lineup exactly when he was expected back in the lineup.

The Senators' captain suffered a thumb injury on Oct. 13, had surgery a few days later, and was expected to be out for 6-8 weeks. That was six weeks ago, and while returning when he's supposed to is a good thing, we've known this was coming, and things have gone exactly according to plan.

Tkachuk announced on Wednesday on his weekly podcast that he's targeting this Friday's game in St. Louis (4 pm) for his return. Not only does the timing allow for a nice Thanksgiving family dinner date at Keith and Chantal's house in St. Louis, but Brady is inviting the entire team over for a Thursday afternoon filled with turkey and football.

As a quick Thanksgiving sidebar: What will be the bigger Thanksgiving Day number? Dallas Cowboys points or Tkachuk turkeys consumed? I'll be honest. My money's on the Tkachurkeys.

"Everything looks good for (a return) Friday," Tkachuk said on his podcast, which has already overtaken Travis Green in the 2025-26 Reliable Source of Senators Injury Information Power Rankings.

What's more interesting than Tkachuk's scheduled return, at least to me, is how brilliantly the rest of the Senators have stepped up in his absence. There aren't many skaters in the NHL as valuable to their team as Tkachuk, and yet the Senators have not only kept their heads above water in his absence, they've thrived.

Since Tkachuk was injured, Ottawa's record is 10-5-4. If they're being honest, most fans probably would have been satisfied to muddle through this Brady-less spell with anything over .500.

Senators Captain Brady Tkachuk Makes Big Announcement On Return Date Senators Captain Brady Tkachuk announced on Wednesday when he’ll rejoin the battle.

But others have stepped up, as good players do. For example, after arriving in Ottawa last March, Dylan Cozens scored 16 points in his first 21 games. Fans wondered whether he could keep that up, so Cozens left no doubt, scoring 16 points in his first 21 games.

Drake Batherson and Tim Stutzle are both skillfully rolling along at or near a point-per-game pace. Claude Giroux has 14 points and continues to paddle furiously (and successfully) against the current of Old Man River. Michael Amadio is already more than halfway to his goal total from last season. Shane Pinto is on pace for over 35 goals.

Most of all, the team has amped up their commitment to try and do the right things in all three zones. Sure, there's still the odd egregious breakdown that makes children cry, but every team has those. The Senators seem to be making the right reads and the right decisions on a far more consistent basis. And when they inevitably screw up, or they're behind in games, they dust themselves off, stick to the process, and just get back to work.

Never too high. Never too low.

If the playoffs started today, Canada would only have the Senators standing on guard for thee. Right now, at 11-7-4, they sit just two points out of the top spot in the NHL’s Atlantic Division. No other Canadian team is in a playoff spot.

Now imagine what the Sens might be able to do with the return of their captain, or, for that matter, if one of their goalies can pull their save percentages out of the .870s. As I sit here watching highlights and applauding the Senators for their long-awaited consistency in defensive structure, Linus Ullmark and Leevi Merilainen are still ranked 62nd and 63rd in the league in save percentage.

However, the recent play of Ullmark, who makes $8.25 million per season, suggests that his wobbly mojo might be rounding into form. Maybe the big Swede, who's never played more than 50 games in a season, is still getting used to his heavier workload and this tidy 63-game pace that he's on.

With better goaltending, Tkachuk's return, and perhaps Thomas Chabot and Ridly Greig not far behind, things are looking rosier for the Senators.

That said, NHL parity is at an all-time high, so the club's room for error remains small. If we can agree that other Senators have stepped up because Tkachuk was out, then the danger exists that, consciously or unconsciously, some may step down because he's back.

Now is certainly not the time for that. Spoiler: There's never a time for that.

Sens fans can strut all they want (and generally are) about being just a point out of first place in the Atlantic right now, while the hated Toronto Maple Leafs are in last place in the Conference. But Ottawa is also just five points ahead of last-place Toronto, which is a good reminder that anyone is just a four-game losing slide away from a freefall in the standings – just like last-place Toronto, which is in last place.

The Senators still have four more games to power through on this voyage. So, in the rough waters of the Atlantic, it's a very welcome sight to see their captain back at the helm.

By Steve WarneThe Hockey News

This article was originally published at The Hockey News Ottawa. Read more:

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