Brady Tkachuk is the Talk of the Hockey World

The 4 Nations Face-Off is heading into its Championship game tomorrow night with the United States taking on Canada. The tournament has been quite popular, despite the naysayers not being sure that it would work. Hand up, that included me. The idea of a four team exhibition tournament in the middle of the season didn’t appeal to me. Wouldn’t you know it, it would be the Ottawa Senators captain that would lead the way in turning this tournament into much-watch hockey. Let’s dive into the details on Brady Tkachuk becoming the talk of the hockey world.

READ MORE: Forecasting the Rest of the Ottawa Senators Season 

Brady Tkachuk By the Numbers

As Senators fan know quite well, Brady Tkachuk puts up satisfying box scores. He currently sits second in the NHL in penalty minutes, first in shots, and eighth in hits. That’s while playing top line minutes with the Senators, though. How would that translate in a tournament on a deep, loaded roster? Well, Tkachuk just keeps hitting guys, fighting guys, and shooting the puck. Here was Tkachuk’s statline in the first two games:

• Two goals, 5 penalty minutes, 8 shots, 14 hits

He did all this while averaging just over 13 minutes of ice time per game. Against Sweden, he played just under 2 minutes before leaving the game after falling into the net. Even then he managed three hits and three shots before leaving. The good news is, it sounds like him leaving was for precautionary reasons and he’ll suit up for the Finals.

Understanding the Moment

The timing of this tournament was seemingly perfect for the NHL. The NFL season was all wrapped up, and the NBA was heading into the All-Star Weekend. Comparing the two sporting events going on at the same time was a big win for hockey. While the NBA was going through the motions of another unmemorable weekend, the NHL had Team Canada and Team USA starting their game off with three fights in the first 10 seconds of the game. The Tkachuk brothers were of course the leaders of that madness.

A classic Canada-USA battle will draw in hockey fans. A game that starts with that type of hatred will draw in all types of sports fans. The Tkachuk’s grew up around the game of hockey with their dad Keith playing in the NHL for over 1,200 games. He also racked up over 2,200 penalty minutes. Needless to say, the brothers understand the importance of toughness. Even more than that, they both seemed to understand the magnitude of the moment, knowing that a fiery start would have the whole sporting world buzzing.

Brady Tkachuk is a fantastic hockey player, but he currently sits 16th among Americans in NHL scoring. And yet, he’s been the talk of the hockey world because of his style of play. It’s the type of hockey that has some Canadians asking why Tom Wilson isn’t on Team Canada. Wilson, by the way, sits 29th amongst Canadians in scoring this season. It’s also the type of hockey that has Senators fans thrilled as they picture Brady finally getting his chance in the playoffs. That of course, will have to wait. For now, Senators fans can watch in conflict as Brady Tkachuk takes on Team Canada in Thursday’s Championship game.