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Ottawa Senators: Brady Tkachuk and Thomas Chabot are building blocks

By Dave Stevenson

OTTAWA, ON - DECEMBER 8: Thomas Chabot #72 of the Ottawa Senators celebrates his first period goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins with teammates Colin White #36, Mark Stone #61 and Brady Tkachuk #7 at Canadian Tire Centre on December 8, 2018 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Andre Ringuette/NHLI via Getty Images)
OTTAWA, ON - DECEMBER 8: Thomas Chabot #72 of the Ottawa Senators celebrates his first period goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins with teammates Colin White #36, Mark Stone #61 and Brady Tkachuk #7 at Canadian Tire Centre on December 8, 2018 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Andre Ringuette/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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Even though the Ottawa Senators have been dreadful during the 2018-19 season, the impressive seasons from Brady Tkachuk and Thomas Chabot are giving fans hope. 

The Ottawa Senators came into the 2018-19 NHL season with very little hope. And rightfully so – they’re a rebuilding team who don’t have a first-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, which projects to be a deep one. Their fanbase deserves far better and it’s hard to believe the Senators were just a goal away from making the Stanley Cup Final in 2017.

As expected, the team hasn’t been able to overcome the loss of Erik Karlsson, as the defense has been historically bad at allowing shots. The Senators are allowing shots on goal at the same rate as arguably the worst team in NHL history, the 1974-75 Washington Capitals. At least the latter was an expansion team.

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However, the Senators have had some bright spots. The play of Mark Stone and Matt Duchene has elevated their trade values and Ottawa could get at least one first-round pick back, which would ease the burden of trading their 2019 first-rounder for Duchene. Their biggest bright spots, though, have been 2018 first-round pick Brady Tkachuk and young defenseman Thomas Chabot.

The Senators needed both of those guys to have great years because they’re the guys the next great Ottawa team will be built around. Thus far, the duo has been quite impressive. They could be the building blocks the Senators desperately need. If Chabot and Tkachuk are for real, that should help speed up the rebuild.

Chabot

As of Dec. 11, Chabot leads all NHL defensemen in points with 33. Not only that, his overall game has been outstanding. Chabot has been trusted to be a first-pairing defenseman by the Senators thanks to the Karlsson trade.

Not only has he played like one, he’s been one of the best in the league. Chabot has the fourth-highest relative CorsiFor percentage among all defensemen with at least 300 minutes played. He also has the 11th highest relative scoring chances for percentage. Chabot has immediately taken on Karlsson’s role and done a darn good job of filling in some huge shoes.

Tkachuk

Tkachuk’s success has gone unnoticed for several reasons. First of all, Elias Pettersson has been a regular on highlight reels for the Vancouver Canucks. He’s running away with the Calder Trophy, though Tkachuk should be getting a lot more consideration than he’s currently getting. He’s averaging nearly a point per game with 16 points (nine goals and seven assists) in 20 games.

Secondly, in case you didn’t notice, Tkachuk has missed a few games due to injury. He also doesn’t have the highlight reel plays that Pettersson has. However, Tkachuk has had a far greater impact on his team’s possession numbers than Pettersson.

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Colin White is another young forward who has been impressive for the Senators. But Tkachuk and Chabot are stealing the show and proving to be future building blocks. You need stars to win in the NHL. So far, Tkachuk and Chabot are both looking like stars.

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