- Thomas Chabot says he would be lying to call himself happy about Brady Tkachuk leaving Ottawa
- The longest-tenured Senator called the vacant captaincy “an honour” and said Ottawa feels like home
- Read below for Chabot’s full comments and where the Senators captaincy race sits
Thomas Chabot didn’t soften it.
The Senators defenseman was asked Tuesday at the team’s annual charity golf tournament in Manotick about Brady Tkachuk requesting a trade out of Ottawa. He gave the bluntest answer anyone in that room has offered on the subject.
“You want guys to be here. You want guys to want to be part of this team and city. When you see something like that, I’d be lying to say I was happy when he decided to leave. We felt like we’re on the verge of starting to make playoffs and building something.”
Chabot added that he holds nothing against his former teammate and wished him luck in Florida. Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun, on hand at Rideau View Golf Club, noted that Chabot and Tim Stutzle both landed on the same idea from separate podiums:
Tkachuk asked out this offseason and Ottawa dealt him to Florida on June 21, dropping him onto a Panthers roster that already had his brother Matthew. The return was four picks, three of them first-rounders, including the ninth and 25th selections in this year’s draft.
Nobody left in that dressing room has been there longer than Chabot. Ottawa took him 18th overall in 2015, and all 569 of his NHL games have come in a Senators sweater, along with 335 points and roughly 23 minutes a night.
Wanting teammates who are all in on the city is a strange thing to say out loud unless you plan on being the one saying it every day. That is the read on our end too:
He was also asked directly about wearing the letter, and he didn’t dodge that one either. Chabot called it an honour and said Ottawa feels like home, per Alex Adams:
Three names are still in the captaincy race: Chabot, Jake Sanderson and Stutzle, with a decision expected before camp opens Sept. 16. Stutzle has struck a similar tone on the trade, telling reporters last month the team has to move on.
Ottawa has eight days to pick a captain. Chabot spent Tuesday making the case without ever asking for the job.
