Tkachuk Still Haunts Canadiens, But Slafkovsky Offers a Glimpse of Redemption
It’s been nearly eight years since the Canadiens passed on Brady Tkachuk in the 2018 NHL Draft, and the sting hasn’t faded. If anything, it’s grown sharper with each game he plays against Montreal.
The Senators’ captain has made a habit of punishing the Habs, both on the scoresheet and with his trademark physical edge. And for fans in Montreal, that familiar question keeps resurfacing: *What if?
Let’s rewind. The Canadiens held the third overall pick in 2018, with Rasmus Dahlin and Andrei Svechnikov already off the board.
Tkachuk-6-foot-4, 226 pounds of pure power-forward potential-was sitting right there. A natural fit for a team long criticized for lacking size and grit.
But then-GM Marc Bergevin and head scout Trevor Timmins went a different route. Rather than stick to their usual “best player available” mantra, they drafted for positional need and selected Jesperi Kotkaniemi, a center from Finland.
It didn’t work out.
Kotkaniemi never quite found his footing in Montreal. By 2021, the Canadiens didn’t even attempt to match an offer sheet from the Carolina Hurricanes.
A fresh start in Raleigh hasn’t helped much either. This season, he’s been a healthy scratch 21 times, and Carolina has made it clear he’s on the trade block.
But with four years left on a deal that carries a $4.82 million cap hit, there haven’t been any takers.
Meanwhile, Tkachuk has flourished in Ottawa. He’s become not just a cornerstone for the Senators, but a consistent thorn in Montreal’s side.
In 32 games against the Canadiens, he’s racked up 15 goals and 15 assists. He plays with the kind of edge and presence that the Habs have been missing for years-a constant reminder of what could’ve been.
But here’s where things start to get interesting.
The Canadiens may have finally found their own version of Tkachuk in Juraj Slafkovsky. The top pick in the 2022 draft has openly said he models parts of his game after the Senators’ captain, and lately, he’s started to look the part. After a rocky start to his NHL career-including missing more than half of his rookie season with a lower-body injury-Slafkovsky is beginning to show why Montreal bet big on him.
Head coach Martin St. Louis made a bold move in November, shifting Slafkovsky off the top line with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield.
It wasn’t a demotion-it was a spark. Slafkovsky was paired with fellow young guns Oliver Kapanen and Ivan Demidov, and together, they’ve formed one of the Canadiens’ most dynamic lines.
On many nights, they’ve been the team’s most effective unit.
Slafkovsky, who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs in at 220 pounds, has been the driving force. He’s playing with physicality, confidence, and a growing sense of how to use his frame to dominate in the NHL’s tighter spaces.
Remember, this is still a young core-Slafkovsky is 21, Demidov is 20, and Kapanen is 22. But the chemistry they’ve built is real, and it’s giving Montreal fans something they haven’t had in a while: hope for a brighter, tougher, more competitive future.
Yes, Tkachuk still looms large over the Canadiens’ recent draft history. And yes, the Kotkaniemi pick remains a cautionary tale. But if Slafkovsky continues on this trajectory, Montreal may finally have their answer-not just to Tkachuk, but to years of searching for a franchise forward who can blend skill, size, and snarl.
It’s early, but the signs are promising. And for a fanbase that’s endured its share of what-ifs, that’s more than welcome news.