Florida Panthers Acquire Brady Tkachuk, Reunite Tkachuk Brothers

The Florida Panthers, who feature Latvian defenseman Uvis Balinskis, announced two trades on Monday that ultimately brought longtime Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk to the team. First, Florida traded forward Mackie Samoskevich to the Seattle Kraken in exchange for the 25th overall pick in this year's draft and a conditional second-round pick next year. The Panthers then sent the 25th pick, along with their own ninth overall pick this year, a second-round pick in 2027, and a conditional first-round pick in 2029 to Ottawa for Brady Tkachuk.

Brady Tkachuk, 26, has spent his entire NHL career with Ottawa, which drafted him fourth overall in 2018. He served as the Senators' captain for five consecutive seasons. This season, he recorded 59 points (22 goals, 37 assists) in 60 games, with 71 penalty minutes and a plus-4 rating. In four playoff games, he did not register a point but had 13 penalty minutes and a minus-4 rating.

In Florida, Brady will play alongside his older brother Matthew, with whom he won an Olympic gold medal for Team USA earlier this year. Matthew Tkachuk, 28, played only 31 games this season due to injury, tallying 34 points (13 goals, 21 assists). He has four seasons remaining on an eight-year, $76 million contract (average $9.5 million per season). Brady has two years left on a seven-year, $57 million deal (average $8.2 million per season).

The Panthers have been highly successful in recent years, winning two Stanley Cups and reaching the finals three times. However, this season they finished third from the bottom in the Eastern Conference with 84 points. The Senators, with 99 points, placed eighth and were swept 4-0 in the first round by the eventual champion Carolina Hurricanes.