Who The Ottawa Senators Should Draft With Their First-Rounders From Tkachuk Trade
The Brady Tkachuk trade is a tough one to swallow for the Ottawa Senators, which had rebuilt to the point that the team had made the playoffs two years in a row and still had some upside to it.
With their captain now off to the Florida Panthers, the Sens will have to recalibrate.
Part of the Tkachuk return was two first-round draft picks in 2026, Nos. 9 and 25. That draft happens to kick off Friday in Buffalo, so GM Steve Staios doesn't have a ton of time to get a plan sorted.
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At No. 25, the Sens can be a bit more risky.
This could be the spot to take a goaltender – and depending on what teams do in front of them, it could be the first netminder off the board.
Tobias Trejbal had an incredible rookie season in the USHL with Youngstown, while Brady Knowling from the USA Hockey National Team Development Program is 6-foot-5. Dmitri Borichev is the top Russian available, and that nation has minted a lot of great keepers over the years. The Senators had two goalies in their Future Watch top 10: Lucas Beckman at No. 7 and Mads Sogaard (already 25 years old) at No. 10.
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The Ottawa Senators and Florida Panthers made the biggest trade of the off-season thus far, but both clubs still have work to do to address other roster issues.
Another route would be to go with high risk, high reward.
Ryan Roobroeck is a big, goal-scoring left winger who hasn't always impressed with OHL Niagara, but the IceDogs also go through coaches and GMs like they're rolls of hockey tape. Roobroeck was recently traded to Guelph, and the Storm are hosting the Memorial Cup next season, so he's guaranteed to play important hockey in 2026-27.
There's also Marcus Nordmark, another offensively gifted winger who had scouts pulling their hair out with his inconsistency in Sweden this season. If Nordmark figures that part of his game out, you've got a dynamic threat whose profile otherwise would have him going ten picks higher.
Another player who battled consistency issues was center Maddox Dagenais. When he's on, Dagenais is a physical force and a leader who can put up points.
Again, if Ottawa still has multiple picks (and they also have No. 32, let's not forget) on draft day, they can swing for the fences on that second one.
It may not heal the Tkachuk wound, but it's a start.
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This story was originally published June 22, 2026 at 8:22 AM.