Ottawa Senators head coach Travis Green said on Monday that captain Brady Tkachuk is on track to return to the lineup “sooner [rather] than later.”
He added that Tkachuk is doing “great” as he works his way back from thumb surgery.
The 26-year-old was injured in the third game of the season on Oct. 13 and had thumb surgery four days later.
The star winger said on the Wingmen podcast released last week that the plan was for him to play around American Thanksgiving, which falls on Thursday.
The Senators face the Vegas Golden Knights Wednesday and then play the St. Louis Blues on Friday as part of their current seven-game road trip.
Tkachuk has missed 19 games after undergoing surgery on Oct. 16 to repair a torn ligament on his thumb and was expected to need a recovery time of six-to-eight weeks. He resumed skating with his teammates two weeks ago.
The 26-year-old has three assists over three games this season after netting 29 goals and 26 assists over 72 games in 2024-25.
Senators general manager Steve Staios said earlier in the month that Tkachuk has continued to be a presence even while injured.
“Brady’s done all he can to continue to lead, even with his injury, being in and around the group,” Staios said on Nov. 10. “Credit to the group. We know how much of an impact that he is for us as a team, yet our players took it upon themselves to step up and continue to play well.”
The team has gone 10-5-4 without Tkachuk in the lineup for a 11-7-4 record overall.
Selected fourth overall in 2018, Tkachuk has 191 goals and 407 points in 515 career games. He had 29 goals and 55 points in 72 games last season after topping 30 goals and 65 points in each of the previous three seasons.