The Ottawa Senators got potentially catastrophic injury news on Tuesday. The Sens lost their captain, Brady Tkachuk, to injury during their 4-1 loss to the Nashville Predators on Monday afternoon.
The fateful play occurred during a Senators power play during the first period of Monday’s match. Tkachuk played the puck behind the Preds’ net, getting a hard bump from Nashville captain Roman Josi. The hit sent Tkachuk headlong into the board.
The awkward fall, while it could have been worse, resulted in Tkachuk suffering a wrist injury. Here’s a look at the play:
Tkachuk left the game but returned. He eventually missed the final nine minutes of the game or so. The club did not provide an immediate assessment of the injury following the game. The initial thought is that Tkachuk could miss about four weeks with the injury.
However, the club will determine if Tkachuk will require surgery. If that’s the case, Tkachuk could miss several months as he recovers from the ailment.
The Senators are 1-2 to start this season. While hardly an awful start, the Sens must prioritize getting back into the standings. Otherwise, they may fall too far behind to catch up for a playoff spot this season.
Senators Have “Next Man Up” Mindset
When asked about the outcome of Brady Tkachuk’s injury, Senators coach Travis Green stated:
“Next man up.”
The comments, as quoted by CityNews, highlight the resilience in Ottawa. The team won’t dwell on losing their captain for an extended period. Instead, the club will press forward and keep playing.
The Senators have a strong, young forward core featuring Tim Stutzle, Drake Batherson, Dylan Cozens, and Shane Pinto. Veterans Fabian Zetterlund, David Perron, and Claude Giroux round out the forward group. As such, the Senators have the wherewithal to withstand Tkachuk’s absence.
It will ultimately come down to the club displaying the consistency needed to make up for Tkachuk’s lost leadership and scoring.
It’s worth pointing out that if the worst happens, the Senators may look at replacing Tkachuk with another top-six forward. Of course, that move would largely depend on where the Senators are in the playoff race, say, around Thanksgiving in late November.
Ottawa Loses on Disallowed Goal
The Senators had an unfortunate run of bad luck on Monday. In addition to losing Tkahuck, Ottawa lost the game. Most importantly, the game came down to an overturned goal by Ottawa.
Here’s a look at the goal:
The goal, initially scored by Jake Sanderson, was valid. But the Predators challenged. After roughly 15 minutes of review, the booth determined that Stutzle had interfered with Nashville netminder Juuse Saros.
The goal didn’t count, leaving the game scoreless at that point. The Predators scored in the second to take a 1-0 lead into the second intermission. Nashville eventually pulled away, winning the game 4-1.
The win improved the Preds’ record to 2-0-1, and temporarily put them in second place in the Central Division behind the division-leading Colorado Avalanche. The Predators will look to pull even with the Avalanche as they take on the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Senators Get Catastrophic Injury News, Could Derail Season appeared first on Heavy Sports.