Senators go with strong bloodlines, select Tkachuk
Brady, at 4th overall to Ottawa, goes higher than father Keith, brother Matt
DALLAS — Brady Tkachuk earned some family bragging rights Friday.
The Ottawa Senators selected the 18-yearold winger with the fourth overall pick in the NHL draft, two spots higher than older brother Matthew went to the Calgary Flames in 2016.
He also bested their father, Keith Tkachuk, who was the 19th selection of the Winnipeg Jets in 1990.
“The weight is off my shoulders now,” Brady Tkachuk joked. “(Matthew) will definitely hear about it later.”
The Scottsdale, Ariz., native netted eight goals and 23 assists in 40 games during his freshman 2017-18 season at Boston University, helping the school to a Hockey East title while being named to the all-rookie team.
“I’m super happy right now,” Tkachuk said. “Super excited to celebrate this with my family and friends.”
The 6-foot-3, 192-pound forward said recent negative headlines coming out of Ottawa, including cyberbullying allegations made by the wife of captain Erik Karlsson against the fiancee of former teammate Mike Hoffman, didn’t deter him from wanting to go to the nation’s capital.
Hoffman was traded to the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday. The Sharks in turn flipped the talented winger to the Florida Panthers a few hours later.
Tkachuk knows Senators forward Colin White and grew up in St. Louis with Ottawa prospect Logan Brown.
“I know it’s run by great management,” Tkachuk said. “I know there’s great guys in the locker room.”
Keith Tkachuk said he had a brief discussion with Senators GM Pierre Dorion before the draft about the controversy.
“It wasn’t great, the stuff coming out,” said the elder Tkachuk. “But the people in there are going to straighten things out. Brady’s a character kid. Stuff like that won’t bother him. Hopefully down the road, when he’s ready to play, everything will be good.
“It’s a business. (Dorion’s) got to do what’s best for his franchise. We’re going to do what’s best for Brady, but overall we’re really happy.”
Brady Tkachuk said he wants to make the NHL next season, but added there’s a chance he could return to Boston University.
“I’m just looking at the long run,” he said. “I want to have a long career. I don’t want to rush anything, but I definitely feel like I can be ready. That’s a discussion for the next couple days.”
Tkachuk added that “I was shaking a bit because I was so excited. I was kind of nervous going on the stage. I didn’t want to trip on the steps or anything like that.
“When I got up there, it was surreal. It was a dream come true.”
The Senators also had the 22nd pick, but traded it to the New York Rangers for the No. 26 selection as well as the No. 48 overall pick in today’s second round.Ottawa took AJHL defenceman Jacob Bernard-Docker with the 26th pick.