Senators’ Owner Eugene Melnyk Refusing to Talk to Brady Tkachuk

There’s only one remaining RFA out there that still requires a contract. That’s Brady Tkachuk and all eyes on the forward and the Ottawa Senators. Will the team and the player be able to come together prior to the start of the 2021-22 regular season? If not, how much time is Tkachuk prepared to miss?

It’s not going to help matters if the owner of the team is fed up with the player and isn’t on speaking terms with him. That may be what’s going on in Ottawa right now if the comments from one NHL insider are accurate.

According to Andy Strickland, the Senators, specifically, owner Euegene Melynk might be taking an interesting approach to the Tkachuk negotiations. It’s one he’s taken before. Strickland seems to hint that until Tkachuk is ready to talk terms that suit what the Senators are looking for, Melynk might choose to simply not communicate with the player.

Strickland writes:

Lack of communication from Ottawa to the Brady Tkachuk camp is a big reason of what’s preventing Tkachuk from being signed. The Senators Owner has a history of this with star players. The team is set only on signing Tkachuk to a 7 or 8 year term vs doing a bridge deal. The Senators, at times, have gone several days w/o reaching out to the Tkachuk camp. There’s a solution and a deal to be made. Again organization has a history of this with star players.

Lack of communication from Ottawa to the Brady Tkachuk camp is a big reason of what’s preventing Tkachuk from being signed. The Senators Owner has a history of this with star players. The team is set only on signing Tkachuk to a 7 or 8 year term vs doing a bridge deal. 1/2

— Andy Strickland (@andystrickland) October 5, 2021

The Senators, at times, has gone several days w/o reaching out to the Tkachuk camp. There’s a solution and a deal to be made. Again organization has a history of this with star players.

— Andy Strickland (@andystrickland) October 5, 2021

Will This Work?

If the Tkachuks are dug into their stance and the Senators are going long moments of time without talking to the player and his family, it’s hard to envision a scenario where this deal gets done anytime soon. There’s nothing to suggest here that Melynk simply not reaching out to Tkachuk will sway him one way or the other. The forward has already proven he’s willing to be the lone big-ticket RFA without a deal. Why would a little ghosting matter at this point?

If this is a pattern for Melynk, he might want to rethink his strategy. The Senators’ organization has a history of losing marquee players and it’s well known that some of those players grow frustrated with the organization on the way out. The last thing the Senators want to do is make these negotiations anything but professional.

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