Brady Tkachuk and Matthew Tkachuk might want to consider not having their dad on the podcast anymore. Too many Tkachuks seem to make things uncomfortable for everyone.
Playing 18 seasons in the league, Keith Tkachuk was one of the best American players in NHL history. A five-time All-Star, he is one of only four American-born players to score 500 goals, and was the sixth American player to score 1,000 points.
The elder Tkachuk appeared on Brady and Matthews’ podcast Wingmen this past week and made things very uncomfortable when he started going on about how today’s NHL players are too soft.
“Holy Christ, his whole team,” Keith Tkachuk said gesturing to Matthew, who plays for the Florida Panthers, currently missing a lot of players. “My pinky hurts. I’m out for six to eight (weeks).”
“I knew that was coming,” said a laughing Matthew. “I knew right when he said that, I was like ‘Don’t say it.’ ”
“‘I just had a bad sleep, so I can’t play today,'” Keith responded mockingly. “Oh my god, disgusting.”
“Alright, we’re going to move on here,” said Matthew.
“‘I can’t play back to back,'” Keith continued in a mocking tone. “‘Rest management.'”
“That is crazy. Back-to-back, that used to not be… whatever,” replied Matthew.
“Grant Fuhr played 70 games in one year. Seventy-six,” said Keith before Matthew redirected the conversation.
That last example was taken by many listeners to be a shot at Senators goalie Linus Ullmark, who didn’t play last Saturday because he said he needed rest. Ullmark had also taken a one-month leave of absence earlier in the season due to personal reasons related to his mental health.
Considering Brady Tkachuk is Ottawa’s captain, the inappropriateness of the situation was a bit over the line for some, especially when he was mostly laughing at his dad’s comments.
We might be witnessing the first ‘podcast in your parents’ basement’ have a serious effect on a hockey team,” TSN’s Bryan Hayes said. “Never thought I’d see the day, but the Tkachuks might’ve pulled off the impossible.”
Senators head coach Travis Green downplayed the potential drama, but neither Ullmark nor Brady Tkachuk was made available to the media on Thursday before Ottawa’s game against the Buffalo Sabres.
Afterward, Brady spoke with the media and said that his dad’s comments had been misconstrued.
“Being a part of it and after watching it back, I thought it was pretty clear he was talking about Florida,” Tkachuk said. “I don’t really know how it got turned or misconstrued, but you know what happens. But I mean, I know in there I thought it was clear as they were talking about Florida, but a lot of all that other stuff, and just people taking it and twisting it, just nothing I can do about it.”
He added that he spoke with his father afterward and came away feeling that there was no intent to single out any specific player.
“I talked to him after, and there was no shot at anyone,” he said. “I don’t know how it got twisted to this point where we’re having to talk about it now. To me, it was clear as day he was talking about the Florida Panthers.”
Pushed to discuss it further, Brady started to get annoyed that the topic wasn’t being moved on from.
“I’ve answered this a couple of times now. People are going to interpret things how they want, but I know what was said and what I was part of. A lot of the things being suggested didn’t come out of my mouth,” he said.
Ultimately, Tkachuk said he supports his father and won’t speak for him any further.
“I completely respect my dad. He’s going to be a Hall of Famer so, I mean, I’m not going to put words in his mouth or explain what he what he said. If you know him, he’s an outgoing guy, says kind of what he thinks, and I know it comes from a good place.”
Given that the Senators are in the heat of a battle to make the playoffs, distractions like these are the last thing they need. And if they do fall short, you better believe this will come back to haunt Tkachuk and make him reconsider what needs to be said, or not said, on his podcast.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.