“Ever since Four Nations, I’ve been addicted to those big game feelings,” revealed Brady Tkachuk back in March as the Senators still struggled to make it to the playoffs. Cut to April 20, and Tkachuk is staring at some of the most important, and biggest, games of his career. For the first time since 2017, the Ottawa Senators have made it to the Stanley Cup playoffs, and the first time ever with Brady among their ranks. But it wasn’t the golden start to the postseason campaign one would’ve foretold.
In their Game 1 match of the playoffs against the regional arch-nemesis, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Senators took a gruelling 6-2 beating. Despite five hits on target, Brady Tkachuk couldn’t get past Anthony Stolarz and hop on the scoresheet. But that was still, probably, far from the worst thing that the 25-year-old winger had to experience at the Scotiabank Arena tonight.
Brady Tkachuk opens up about his playoff debut
Playing against Toronto in the first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs, Tkachuk was booed heavily by the Leafs fans. “Brady Sucks” chants filled the air, and one could even go on to speculate that it took a toll on the Senators star’s performance today. But the hate from the home fans isn’t enough to take Tkachuk’s mind off the responsibility at hand. In a YouTube upload by Ottawa from April 20, the team’s star player noted his thoughts on the chants that came flying at him at today’s game.
“I guess I expected it. So I couldn’t care less,” Brady Tkachuk told reporters after the match with nonchalance. He also noted that the Toronto fans will have to do much more than take such potshots at him to keep him bogged down. “That’s not gonna affect me,” the Sens star said with a hint of a grin on his face. However, while he did his best to keep things lucid, looking at how he got entangled in a scuffle with the Maple Leafs’ Scott Laughton in the second period, Senators fans would wonder if the chants did, in fact, get under Tkachuk’s skin.
However, remembering how things got heated between Team USA and Canada during the inaugural 4 Nations Face-Off in February, you could also argue that Brady isn’t new to such heckling by the crowd. The American national anthem was booed heavily by the Canadian fans before Tkachuk & Co.’s first match at the international tournament. Justifiably, that didn’t sit well with Brady and his teammates, especially his brother, and Panthers star, Matthew Tkachuk.
When the USA took to the ice for the next match against Canada at the Centre Bell at the 4 Nations Face-Off, the Star Spangled Banner was once again received with harsh boos from the some fans. And that was the tipping point. Within the first ten seconds of the high-octane match, three separate fistfights broke out inside the rink. Both Tkachuk brothers had their pieces of the action, and both Brady and Matthew were sent off along with J.T. Miller for acting out. But that was exactly what also made the trio national heroes.
In the following week, it were the Canadians who were on the receiving end of the boos when they crossed the border to play the next portion of the round robin tournament. And yet, Team Canada proved to be thick-skinned and kept their calm as they went on to defeat the USA in the final and win the first-ever 4 Nations Face-Off trophy. But can Brady Tkachuk take notes from the example?
Can the Senators get back to their regular-season form against their foes?
With a 45-30-7 record and 97 points, the Senators limped to the finish of the regular season as the fourth-place finishers of the Atlantic Division. The Leafs (82-52-26), on the other hand, clinched the top seed in the division. The two Eastern Division heavyweights clashed thrice in the regular season, and the Sens won all of those. Maybe that’s why the Maple Leafs looked so eager to make use of the home ice advantage for Game 1 of the playoffs.
NHL, Eishockey Herren, USA Ottawa Senators at Toronto Maple Leafs Jan 27, 2023 Toronto, Ontario, CAN Ottawa Senators left wing Brady Tkachuk 7 scores a goal and celebrates with Ottawa Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson 85 against the Toronto Maple Leafs during the third period at Scotiabank Arena. Toronto Scotiabank Arena Ontario CAN, EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xNickxTurchiarox 20230127_lbm_bt2_227
The Battle of Ontario comes after more than two decades, and it’s redundant to say that the fans are HYPED. With the Maple Leafs winning all four of those postseason matches, Ottawa fans will desperately look for an attempt by the side to even the odds. However, considering that Brady Tkachuk posted the worst stats in four years this season, Sens nation has a lot to worry about. And yet, there are already indications that the seven-match series will be one to keep the fans hooked on the TV.
Today’s match at the Scotiabank Arena was paused momentarily after a fire broke out at the venue’s 300 level. While no one was injured from the mishap, it definitely added some extra heat to the match. Are you excited to move on from tonight and look ahead to Game 2? Tell us your predictions for Brady Tkachuk’s next match in a comment!
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