Brady Tkachuk to donate any thrown jerseys during return to Ottawa to Boys and Girls Club
It’s a week of returns in the NHL. From Brady Tkachuk’s first game back against the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday night as a member of the Florida Panthers to Quinn Hughes’ first return to Vancouver with the Minnesota Wild against the Canucks on Sunday, there’s plenty of anticipation around player and fan reactions.
For Tkachuk, who exited the Senators in a controversial move to leave Canada and link up with his brother, Matthew, in Florida, the anticipation is a relatively hostile environment at the Canadian Tire Centre.
Yet, the former Senators captain is more than ready for it, and has a plan if any of his former jerseys end up thrown onto the ice.
“Just talking with our team, and talking with the Boys and Girls Club, [we’ve decided] that every jersey that gets thrown on the ice is going to get donated to a friend at the Boys and Girls Club in Ottawa,” he said of the plans on Wingmen, the podcast he hosts alongside Matthew. “I don’t recommend doing it…just we could also make this a new tribute instead, if you can toss your jersey on the ice and it’s going to a good cause.”
Tkachuk’s return to Ottawa comes amid a strong start to the season for the 27-year-old, who has six goals and four assists in the Panthers’ first nine games, helping the team reach fourth place in the Eastern Conference’s Atlantic Division with a 5-2-2 record to start the 2026-27 campaign.
“I think, once we get there, it’s going to hit a little more,” Tkachuk said earlier this week when speaking to reporters. “Now it still feels like that game you circle on the calendar, and I bet for a lot of people, can’t believe it’s here, but once we land in Ottawa, set foot and see some of the guys, it’ll be, ‘All right, it’s here.’ It’s going to be nerve-racking; I’m going to be nervous. It’s going to be fun, a weird but cool experience, and yeah, I’m looking forward to it.”
Wednesday’s clash between the Senators and Panthers marks the first of three this season, but the only one on the outskirts of the Canadian capital.
