Ottawa Senators fans got a fresh reminder of how far their former captain's stock has shifted, as Brady Tkachuk just missed out on TSN Hockey's Top 50 Players list, landing at No. 51 this season.
A Notable Drop
The snub stings a bit more given where Tkachuk sat a year ago. He ranked No. 37 on TSN's list last season, meaning he's fallen out of the top 50 entirely heading into this year's rankings.
It's not for lack of production. Tkachuk, 26, registered 22 goals and 59 points in 60 games with the Ottawa Senators last season, doing so despite missing time early in the 2025-26 season with a thumb injury.
From Ottawa's Captain to Florida's Newest Star
The ranking comes at a strange moment for Tkachuk, who was traded from the Ottawa Senators to the Florida Panthers in a deal that saw Florida send Ottawa two first-round picks in the 2026 NHL Draft, a top-10 protected first-round pick in the 2029 NHL Draft, and a second-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft. It's a significant return for a player Ottawa drafted fourth overall back in 2018 and who was in the sixth season of a seven-year, $57.5 million contract at the time of the move.
TSN's Director of Scouting Craig Button and hockey analyst Frankie Corrado broke down the No. 51 ranking on the network, discussing both why Tkachuk landed where he did and whether joining a loaded Florida roster will help or hinder his ceiling going forward.
Tkachuk on the Exit
For Ottawa fans still processing the trade, Tkachuk's own comments about leaving the Senators add some context to the ranking talk. He's said he answered questions about the trade situation repeatedly, calling it "a distraction and frustrating to deal with." He also described the choice to request a trade as one that followed a lot of reflection, calling it "a really, really hard decision."
What Led Here
The TSN ranking lands just days after Tkachuk spoke publicly about his tough exit from Ottawa, comments that had local fans buzzing about what came next for the franchise's former leader. Senators fans had already voiced frustration over how the announcement was handled earlier this month.
Why It Matters for Ottawa
For a player who spent his formative NHL years wearing the Senators' "C," landing outside the top 50 is a small but pointed data point in how the hockey world views him post-trade. Whether the ranking reflects genuine skepticism about his fit in Florida or simply reflects a down injury-affected season remains part of the conversation TSN's own analysts raised. Either way, it's another chapter in a story Ottawa fans have been closely tracking since the trade first broke.
Sources: TSN
