The Ottawa Senators traded captain Brady Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers ahead of the NHL Draft in June, following internal locker room friction linked to a player-hosted podcast.
The move sent the star winger to the consecutive Stanley Cup champions, where he joins his older brother, Matthew Tkachuk.
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Sportsnet NHL insider Elliotte Friedman revealed details about the dressing room environment during Tkachuk's final days with the Senators, noting that the podcast "Wingmen," co-hosted by the Tkachuk brothers, alienated teammates.
"It was time," Friedman said.
An Ottawa player reached out to Friedman to explain that the audio show had generated significant issues within the organization.
"It was time to end the noise around the whole situation… Post-Olympics, it was time.
A lot was going on, and the players were tired of it… I did have someone who reached out to me, one of the players, and said the only thing he felt that we should have added was the podcast.
And he said the podcast caused some problems, and it was just time," Friedman said during the season finale of his podcast.
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The public friction intensified during the regular season when Keith Tkachuk, the father of the players, appeared on the show.
The elder Tkachuk delivered critical remarks targeting members of the Ottawa roster, specifically starting goaltender Linus Ullmark.
Roster Restructuring
Following the trade, Senators General Manager Steve Staios utilized the assets gained from Florida to alter the team's lineup.
Staios traded the No. 9 overall draft pick to the San Jose Sharks to acquire top-six left-shot winger William Eklund.
The roster reconstruction concludes a turbulent two-year stretch for the franchise.
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Tkachuk departed Ottawa having secured two playoff appearances without a series victory, recording 213 goals and 250 assists for 463 points across 572 regular-season appearances.
