Senators News & Rumours: Tkachuk Trade Reaction, Marchand’s Stutzle Jab & Batherson Extension – The Hockey Writers – Ottawa Senators

Training camp is closing in, and with the Ottawa Senators holding a media availability ahead of their Senators Charity Open golf tournament, some of the biggest offseason storylines were addressed by the team.

From reactions to Brady Tkachuk leaving and Brad Marchand’s comments, to some positive comments on Drake Batherson‘s contract negotiations, here is the latest from the Senators.

Chabot, Stutzle Speak on Reaction to Tkachuk Trade

After everybody had their own reaction to the Tkachuk trade, the question about what the players thought of it came up.

Tim Stutzle spoke about Tkachuk’s departure a few weeks ago, with the big statement being, “We’re focused on what we have ahead of us and the team we have right now. So, wish him all the best.”

Stutzle suggested multiple times that the message in the room is to move on. At the Senators Charity Open, he doubled down, stating, “[I was] pretty surprised. At the end it’s his decision. I said before, we’re moving on.”

He added, “If you play with a guy for that many years, a good friend to everyone on the team, you can’t worry about that. You gotta keep playing. I’m excited for next season.”

When Chabot took to the podium, he was also asked about his reaction to the trade and if he felt slighted by Tkachuk.

He responded by saying, “We always do. You want guys to be here. You want guys to want to be part of this team and city. When you see something like that, I’d be lying if I said I was happy when he decided to leave…”

Chabot also stated that he called Tkachuk after the trade and added, “I don’t hold anything against him. I wished him the best of luck for his future & his career.”

Last week, a regular rumours update was posted by PuckEmpire on Instagram, sharing that Chabot, Stutzle, and defenseman Jake Sanderson were the front-runners for the team’s captaincy.

Marchand, the former NHL captain and current Tkachuk teammate on the Florida Panthers, commented, “Hahahah ……stutzle….hahaha”

Batherson spends a lot of his summer in Nova Scotia with Marchand, so he was asked about the comment, to which he replied, “I text him saying, ‘Marchy, what are you doing?… I told Timmy it’s all good. He’s been doing that for 20 years, that’s just Marchy being Marchy.”

When Stutzle was asked about it, he told reporters that he wasn’t worried about those comments, that he respects him as a player, and that is how he gets into people’s heads.

One of the big questions this offseason was about Batherson and what the extension talks would look like.

There have been reports recently that Batherson’s extension would be over $10 million, and Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch wrote that the expectation would be the player going to free agency if a deal isn’t signed by opening night. (from ‘Senators need to sign Drake Batherson before uncertainty takes over’, Ottawa Sun, Aug. 30, 2026)

At the media availability, Batherson told reporters, “Steve knows I want to be here.”, and wants a deal done before camp.

With training camp opening next week, along with the Sept. 15 deadline for an eight-year extension, Batherson is looking to get his extension done as soon as possible.

Batherson made it clear he wants to be in the capital long term. In today’s world of trade requests, especially out of Canada, having a player make that kind of statement should relax Senators fans.