Tkachuk and Tavares: Two Captains, Two Very Different Exits

Wearing the "C" means more than a stitched letter. It stands for the link between a team and its fans, and when that player leaves, the future the fanbase pictured leaves with him. Ottawa fans are living that now with Brady Tkachuk. The closest comparison is still the one that stings on Long Island: John Tavares leaving the Islanders for Toronto in 2018.

Two exits, one clean and one negotiated

Tavares left as an unrestricted free agent. In July 2018 he signed a 7-year, $77 million contract with Toronto, and the Mississauga native described it as a childhood dream to play for his hometown club. The pyjama photo that showed him growing up a fan of the blue and white only made the move feel more personal. The Islanders received nothing in return. The cleanest version of a captain's exit is the one where the player controls the timing and the team gets no return at all.

Tkachuk's exit looked different on paper. His no-movement clause let him restrict the teams Ottawa could explore, so the club still had to negotiate, and Tkachuk had real say over where he'd land. The club wasn't going to move a player it had drafted fourth overall in 2018 for peanuts. The result was a trade to Florida, where Tkachuk gets to play alongside his older brother Matthew for the first time. Both players had more say in their departures than the average captain does, and Tavares and Tkachuk held most of the cards.

What came back, and why it matters

This is the part that separates the two situations. General manager Steve Staios moved in the off-season, shipping Tkachuk to Florida in a deal that brought back three first-round picks and a second-rounder. Those picks filled some much-needed space in a prospect pool that had been thin. Staios then sent the ninth overall pick in the 2026 NHL draft to San Jose for some immediate roster help, bringing in winger William Eklund and two prospects.

Set against the Islanders' empty return, that's a major win for Ottawa. Here's the thing, though: getting assets back doesn't cancel out losing a captain. A front office can do strong work and fans can still feel betrayed by the player who pushed for the exit. Ottawa can appreciate the stealth trade and still be furious with the person who walked away from the "C." My read is that both feelings will sit side by side for a while.

Facing the crowd

Tavares got the full treatment on March 1, 2019, when Islanders fans chanted "It's your bedtime" and "Where's your jammies?" during the third period of his return to Long Island. The jeers that night were the reaction of a fanbase that felt the captaincy had been a promise. Tkachuk is about to get his own version. His return to Ottawa is shaping up as an emotionally charged night at the Canadian Tire Centre, with loud boos, creative chants, duct-taped jerseys and the possibility of an occasional jersey toss.

Both captains turned their backs on their franchises and their fans, and now Tkachuk has to stand in that building and take it. The Wingmen podcast has already tackled the emotion of the first trip back, with Matthew and Brady talking through what it means to return. That conversation will probably look very different from the one playing out in the stands.

What to watch next

The comparison works best as a way to understand the anger. Tavares left a clean hole with no return. Tkachuk left a hole that Ottawa has started to fill with picks and a roster player who is already in the lineup. The real test is whether the picks and prospects from Florida and San Jose develop into players who matter to the next Ottawa core. Until then, the fans will remember the captain who went to Florida, and the front office will be judged on what it built with the assets it got back.