For the second year in a row, Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk was in the thick of a Stanley Cup celebration as a proud brother. Brady had said at the end of the season he had planned to follow Matthew's playoff run from afar this year, but as the sting of elimination faded, he obviously had a change of heart and wanted to be there for his brother.

Brady was down on the ice on Tuesday night in Sunrise, Florida, once again joining the family to watch Matthew hoist the Stanley Cup with the Panthers, who powered their way to a second straight Cup, taking down the Oilers in six games. 

Brady says he was impressed with how his brother managed to battle through injuries and still be a major factor.

“I mean I just I think it's gonna come out what he's been dealing with, but for him to step up like that... hopefully the next step is winning (Olympic) gold with him,” Brady said in a postgame interview with Darren Pang.

His diagnosis did come out. Matthew revealed he had a been playing with a torn adductor muscle – torn from the bone, no less – along with a "hernia thing" on the same side. 

“He was a mess,” head coach Paul Maurice told NHL.com. “That’s the medical term. He was a mess."

Hearing that relatively rare diagnosis will resonate with Sens fans like ice cubes down their back. Many still remember 2006 when their Stanley Cup hopes were badly derailed by Dominik Hasek's adductor injury suffered at the Olympics that year. 

Brady also powered through his own injuries this season. In fact, both Tkachuk brothers had injury trouble that seemed to begin during the 4 Nations Face-Off and lingered into the post-season. When NHL owners express concern over shutting the league down in February for a fierce, best-on-best, king-of-the-world tournament, this is exactly the kind of thing they're worried about.

The Tkachuks were named this week to the preliminary roster of six players to represent Team USA again this February at the Olympics.

As Brady posed for family photos on the ice, he was more than ready for the championship celebration, even donning a hat from The Elbo Room, the iconic Fort Lauderdale beach bar where the Panthers returned to party with fans for a second straight year.

This time, though, the celebration probably hit a little differently for Brady. Earlier this spring, the Senators made it to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in eight years, a real turning point for the franchise. Ottawa was eliminated in the first round by the Leafs, which was deeply disappointing, but it did mark a huge step in the team's evolution.

“Our end goal is something that isn’t really a pipe dream anymore,” Tkachuk said, as the Senators were cleaning out their lockers for the year.

“We’re going to continue to get better. It’s all about just growing as players, growing as a group and knowing that we want to win the Stanley Cup. Just getting into the playoffs isn’t good enough anymore.”

While this championship moment belonged to his brother once again, Brady’s turn might not be far off, maybe as soon as February at the Winter Olympics in Italy.

And hopefully someday in Ottawa as well.

Steve Warne
The Hockey News Ottawa

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The Chicago Blackhawks have the third overall pick. This comes from the 2025 Draft Lottery pushing them back one spot. It is an important asset to the organization. 

With this selection, Chicago has many intriguing options —if they decide to keep it instead of trading it away. 

A new report from Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff says that the Blackhawks are listening to offers on this 3rd overall pick. Are they trying to move up? Are they trying to move down? What do they want in return? 

“I do think they want to be active on the trade market,” Seravalli said. “I do think the number 3 overall pick is in play.” 

Blackhawks on CHSN (@CHSN_Blackhawks) on X"The Chicago Blackhawks are open for business over the next 10 days." @frank_seravalli dives into his earlier report that Chicago is open to trading their third overall pick on the Chicago Lead.

There is a lot to figure out before the draft begins on June 27th. Davidson has done a great job drafting since becoming the full-time general manager of the Blackhawks, so he has earned some trust when it comes to evaluating the entry draft. If he feels that there is more value to trading the selection, he will go should that road with confidence. 

Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.

The NHL's buyout window will open on June 20, and New Jersey Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald has a decision to make. 

Ondrej Palat will make $6 million for the next two seasons before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2027. 

The 34-year-old played throughout New Jersey's lineup in 2024-25 and began the postseason playing with Justin Dowling and Nathan Bastian. Palat finished this past season with 28 points, including 15 goals, the most he scored in a Devils uniform. 

When playing on the top line with Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt, Palat was credited with doing the little things that allowed the dynamic duo to shine offensively.  

"He creates a lot of space for me and Jack out there," Bratt said. "Takes the job that sometimes is a tough job that fans and other people don't notice on the ice, to create space for players like us."

"He does a really good job of complementing us, going to the net and getting those greasy pucks in the corner, retrieving them for us," Hughes said.

On the ice, Palat's biggest accomplishment with the Devils came in Game 7 when he assisted on the series-winning goal with his relentless forecheck. 

Off the ice, the winger is valued by his teammates and head coach, Sheldon Keefe, who spoke about how valuable the former Stanley Cup champion is. 

"He knows he is an important guy for our group, no matter what happens," said Nico Hischier, who sits next to Palat in the locker room. 

While his on-ice play leaves something to be desired, considering his cap hit, the organization finds value in Palat. With that said, hockey is a business, and Fitzgerald may choose to part ways with his alternate captain.  

The NHL's buyout window will remain open until June 30 at 5:00 PM EST.

Make sure you bookmark THN's New Jersey Devils site for THN's latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more.

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Former Seattle Kraken defenseman Jaycob Megna took home his first Stanley Cup after the Florida Panthers defeated the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6.

The 32-year-old didn't play in postseason games this season but recorded eight games during the regular season. The 6'6 defenseman was born in Plantation, FL and signed as a free agent this past offseason. Megna will become an unrestricted free agent on July. 1, available to sign with any NHL team.

Megna was traded to the Kraken by the San Jose Sharks for a 4th-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft before the trade deadline. He played just six games with the Kraken, failing to record a point before the Chicago Blackhawks claimed him off waivers. 

With his Stanley Cup triumph, Megna becomes the first former Kraken player to win the Stanley Cup who played a game with the Kraken. 

Stay updated with the most interesting Kraken stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favourites on Google News to never miss a story.

With the Colorado Avalanche only having $1.2 million in cap space left after re-signing Brock Nelson, they will need to make some moves to free up cap space if they want to re-sign their pending unrestricted free agents or sign other players heading into free agency.

The Avalanche has a selection of contracts that they could look to move to free up some cap space, but how many of those cap hits need to be moved to make all of their offseason plans come to fruition?

Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli posted his updated top 30 player trade board, which includes those he sees as likely to be traded this summer. With the NHL Entry Draft slowly approaching and free agency looming over the horizon, recent trade deadline acquisition Charlie Coyle made Seravalli’s list, ranking him at 10th. Samuel Girard at 15th, and Martin Necas at 28th.

Charlie Coyle: 10th

“Scoop: There is arguably no team in a more precarious salary cap position than the Avalanche. They’re up against it. Down the middle, they have Nathan MacKinnon at $12.6m, now Brock Nelson locked up at $7.5m. Does that make Coyle a luxury at $5.25m playing in the 3C role? Many see it that way, which is why Coyle’s name percolated at the Scouting Combine last week in Buffalo. He is one of three Avs on the board as they look for flexibility.” Seravalli states.

Acquired at the trade deadline from the Boston Bruins, Coyle came with a $5.25 million cap hit with two years remaining, including a no-movement clause.

His cap hit of $5.25 million is considerable for a third-line center, especially if he can't produce at the level he did during the 2023-24 season, when he finished with 25 goals and 35 assists for 60 points. However, having depth at the center is always valuable, but at that cap hit, unless production takes a step up, it's tough to swallow that much for so little.

However, the Avalanche would need to find another center immediately if they manage to trade him. Jack Drury could step up on the third line. Parkey Kelly could fill the position, but it became clear toward the end of the season that he was more comfortable playing on the wing, and it showed. Jonathan Toews' name is out there, but that raises significant questions about whether he can play well, considering he hasn't played for the past two seasons, and fill a crucial spot for the Avalanche.

Insider Suggests Colorado Avalanche as Top Destination for Jonathan ToewsThe

Samuel Girard: 15th

“Scoop: The Avalanche have had on-again, off-again conversations with Girard in trade talks going back three years now. Most teams have drawn a line at having no more than one undersized defenseman in their lineup, and for the Avs, that would mean Girard is the odd-man out. The tricky part is the Avs struggled for depth on their blue line this season, particularly on their third pair, so they’ve got some work to do to fill out a more complete group with very limited cap space.”

With a cap hit of $5 million and one more year remaining on his contract, he's going to want a nice payday. However, has his performance shown that he's worth more than $5 million per year? He has dealt with injuries over the past couple of seasons, and his highest total of points in a season was 37, which he achieved back in the 2022-23 season.

Girard finished with three goals and 21 assists in 73 regular-season games this past season. He averaged 20:51 minutes of ice time per game, ranking him third among defensemen on the team, behind Cale Makar and Devon Toews. Additionally, he averaged 26.8 shifts per game, which was the second-most on the team, just behind Devon Toews, who averaged 27.6 shifts. He also ranked second in blocked shots on the team with 111, only trailing Makar’s 128.

However, as Serevalli stated, the blue line is a bit thin outside of Toews and Makar at the moment. Josh Manson is another name that could be moved for space, freeing up $4.5 million. Still, you will only have three defensemen signed if they decide to move either Manson or Girard going into next season.

Sam Malinski is a pending restricted free agent, and Ryan Lindgren is a pending unrestricted free agent, both of whom need new contracts and would require either Manson's or Girard's contract to be moved to free up that cap space to use on a new contract.

If the Avalanche were to trade him, it's really simple; he carries a considerable cap hit that the Avalanche could use on other players on the roster and free agency, and he's in his final year of his contract. Turning 28 next season, he could fetch a solid return if traded. 

A Closer Look at Sam Malinski's Role in the Avalanche’s Offseason DecisionsWith 16 days remaining until the 2025 Free Agency period begins, the Colorado Avalanche have to make some big decisions when it comes to how they want to free up cap space to re-sign their pending unrestricted free agents and their one restricted free agent.

Martin Necas: 28th

Scoop: And just like that, the Colorado Avalanche are back in the same spot now with the player they acquired for Mikko Rantanen that they were with Rantanen one year ago. Quality player. Needs new contract. Going to be expensive. What do we pay him? Here’s the thing: there’s a thought around the league that Necas might not sign for a $9 million AAV right now, hoping to potentially duplicate a season north of a point-per-game. Now what? And if Necas wouldn’t sign for $9m, wouldn’t they just have been better off keeping Rantanen at $12 or $12.5m?”

There has been a massive rumor stating that Necas is “unhappy” with the Colorado Avalanche. However, it's a big topic that needs to be addressed. The Mikko Rantanen trade was a blockbuster trade that shocked the hockey community, and losing Necas will be the nail in the coffin if they can't re-sign him or are “forced” to trade him due to the reports being true.

He is just one year away from becoming an unrestricted free agent, and it has been demonstrated earlier this year that the Avalanche aren’t hesitant to trade players in this situation if they doubt their ability to sign them.

Necas would be pretty young for an unrestricted free agent at 27 years old. He is also coming off a career season (83 points between the Hurricanes and Avalanche) and has proven that he can keep up with one of the best players in the world, Nathan MacKinnon, at least in skating speed.

As a result, he will have considerable negotiating power if he enters next summer as an unrestricted free agent with no contract extension and the cap increasing. The question remains, how much is the Avalanche willing to spend on Necas? And how much does Necas and his camp believe he is worth? Another major season could help his side in any contract extension talks.

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