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The Ottawa Senators are in first place in the Wild Card race and with a five point lead over the Montreal Canadiens, they need to keep their foot on the gas pedal as the seasons winds down.
Unfortunately, the Senators are currently without Brady Tkachuk as he rehabs an upper body injury. The star forward has missed the last two games and it appears he will be out longer.
Via NHL.com:
“I was hoping he was going to skate today, but he’s not going to,” coach Travis Green said Friday. “So, it's about all I can say about it.”
Tkachuk is a massive piece for the Senators, leading the team with 29 goals. He has a total of 55 points in 71 games played. Ryan Graves injured the American on a hit at the end of March in a loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Ottawa has an important back-to-back on Saturday and Sunday against the Florida Panthers and Columbus Blue Jackets.
Ridley Greig expressed just how key Tkachuk is for the Senators, but made it clear that everyone needs to rise to the occasion with him sidelined:
“He's a big piece to our team,” Greig said. “He brings a lot of compete and that kind of emotional side of the game. Everybody has kind of got to step up a little bit and there's a lot more minutes for somebody out there, so guys have to step up.”
Tkachuk is more than just a producer. He's also one of the toughest guys in the NHL who is never afraid to drop the gloves. We saw his grit in the 4 Nations when he fought Sam Bennett.
The Senators are 1-1 since the Tkachuk injury, most recently grabbing a win on Thursday against the Tampa Bay Lightning. With seven games left in the regular season, the 25-year-old should hopefully be back sooner rather than later.
