The Atlantic Division includes some of the NHL’s biggest stars and strongest leaders. That’s to be expected from a division that has produced eight Stanley Cup finalists over the last seven years and four Cup wins.
So, where does Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk stand among his fellow captains in the division? While he’s missed 20 games this season due to injury, will it be in this campaign that he shows he’s among the very best of those wearing the “C” in the division?
The Atlantic Division’s Captains 2025-26
TeamCaptainAppointedAgeNHL GamesFlorida PanthersAleksander Barkov201830804Detroit Red WingsDylan Larkin202129734Ottawa SenatorsBrady Tkachuk202126512Montreal CanadiensNick Suzuki202226455Tampa Bay LightningVictor Hedman2024341131Toronto Maple LeafsAuston Matthews202428629Buffalo SabresRasmus Dahlin202425509Boston BruinsVacant –––
If there’s anything this chart shows, it’s that among its captains, there is a wide spectrum of leadership styles across the division. Barkov, for example, is quiet and understated. He leads by example with his work ethic on full display every game. Panthers bench boss Paul Maurice summed up Barkov, saying, “He’s a quiet man. He’s articulate. He’s very bright. So much of his leadership is truly by example.” (from Pierre LeBrun, “LeBrun: Aleksander Barkov and the unseen leadership behind the Panthers’ playoff run,” The Athletic, 5/9/2023)
Larkin, on the other hand, has a reputation as a fierce, emotional competitor similar in style to Tkachuk. Red Wings bench boss Todd McLellan describes him as “everything a captain should be. Leadership – and leadership isn’t just ‘rah rah.” He’s done a tremendous job. We’re early in the season and he’s playing banged up a little bit. But everything that we should see from Dylan, we’re seeing from him right now.’
What Makes a Great NHL Captain Today?
Much has been written about what makes a great NHL captain. Tkachuk said that wearing the “C” in Ottawa means, “Every day, you kind of need to be on. There were some days when I was younger, you can kind of hide in the weeds, and if I had a bad sleep or was having a bad day, I could just kind of do my own thing. [But now as captain] it’s every day be on, and I feel like that’s why I’m this person, you know? Always energized, always making sure everybody’s OK and happy.”
Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa Senators (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
I think it’s all of that, and more. Great NHL captains lead with their on-ice performance. They define for their teammates the competitiveness and physical presence on the ice that victory demands.
Yet their leadership also extends from the ice into the dressing room and beyond. They have the ability to elevate their teammates. Sometimes by speaking quietly with well-chosen words and perhaps, at times, by what they don’t say. Yet at other times it’s achieved through fiery speeches, the kind delivered by Edmonton Oilers’ captain Connor McDavid after a playoff loss in 2024 and famously captured in Prime Video’s 2024 documentary – FACEOFF: Inside the NHL.
Related: NHL’s Longest-Tenured Captains of All-Time
Great captains also shield their teammates from fan and media criticism when things are bad. They are the ones who typically come out at press conferences to take the heat after tough losses and playoff defeats. Captains are durable and consistent – year after year. They are the face of the franchise in the community and connect the team to its fans. That often means they are put on a pedestal and held to standards from which many of their teammates would shrink.
The Case for Tkachuk as a Top Captain in the Atlantic
Play on the Ice
It’s true that Tkachuk’s goal and point production are not the equal of his fellow Atlantic Division captains. In fact, it’s not even close to any of them. Still, he is a consistent 30-plus goal scorer and over the course of his NHL career has averaged 55 points per season.
Yet point production is not what defines Tkachuk. Rather, he leads his team into battle every night through his high volume of shots, physicality and net-front presence. With 296 shots last season, he ranked fourth in the NHL in shot volume. Matthews came closest to him with 261 shots. As for his physicality, no other captain in the Atlantic, with the possible exception of Larkin, compares to Tkachuk. With 228 hits over 72 games in 2024-25, he ranked 16th in the league overall.
Tkachuk is a role player possessing a rare combination of skill and intimidation from which others take inspiration. At 26 years old and still developing his game, Tkachuk’s limits remain to be seen.
Tkachuk: The Emotional Engine of the Senators
There’s no question that Tkachuk’s intensity sparks his teammates. He drives the pace of the game and drags the Senators into the fight. When he engages early in a game, his energy causes a chain reaction up and down the lineup.
Jake Sanderson summed up the emotion that Tkachuk brings to the Senators, explaining, “He’s the heart and soul of the Ottawa Senators, for sure. He always takes a lot on himself too. But I think you watch him play every single night, he’s leaving it out there. He brings it every single night and he’s the backbone of our team.”
Tkachuk’s Leadership and Maturity Still Developing
Tkachuk has at times been accused of lacking control of his emotions. That can often lead to too many penalties and losing focus on playing his game. A case in point was a game in November last season against the Vancouver Canucks when he took 21 minutes in penalties.
What’s more, many want him to spend less time fighting and more time recording points. Senators’ bench boss Travis Green said, “I don’t want Brady fighting all the time. But Brady is Brady. I’m definitely not going to take away his aggressiveness. But I don’t want him fighting all the time.”
No other captain in the Atlantic Division approached Tkachuk’s 123 penalty minutes. Dahlin came closest racking up 54 penalty minutes last season. As for fights, among Atlantic Division captains, only Tkachuk showed up on HockeyFights.com last season. Still, there are signs that Tkachuk understands he can’t be his team’s top fighter if he is to be an effective captain.
He is also stepping up as the spokesman for his team, often being the first player to publicly shoulder the blame after losses. That’s the hallmark of an NHL captain.
Tkachuk is beloved by Senators fans for his authenticity. Many simply refer to him as “Brady”, as if he were a member of their family. What’s more, he and his wife Emma Farinacci are willing to take a community-facing role. Their charitable work and appearances in Ottawa are too numerous to mention, but perhaps the most important is their partnership with BCG Ottawa. Through various fundraising efforts in their name, the couple has touched over 4,500 Ottawa youth through their support and active participation in BCG.
Tkachuk’s Durability
With five seasons under his belt as captain of the Senators, Tkachuk is one of the longest-serving leaders of any team in the Atlantic Division. With his face often punched, cut and bruised, Tkachuk plays through injuries, setting the example of what it means to be a warrior in the NHL. He sets the standard for rookies and veterans alike.
How Tkachuk Stacks Up Against Other Atlantic Captains
Versus Barkov
Barkov is a more complete two-way centreman than Tkachuk excelling at both offence and defence. His higher point totals compared to Tkachuk, and three Selke Trophies awarded to him as the best defensive forward in the league settle that debate.
As for leadership, while he’s quiet and understated, the King Clancy Memorial Trophy awarded to him last season as the player who best exemplifies leadership both on and off the ice erases any doubts about his quality as a captain.
Aleksander Barkov, Florida Panthers (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
Even so, Tkachuk’s emotional leadership is more visible and perhaps more influential than Barkov’s. Barkov is 30 years old with eight seasons as the Panthers’ captain. Who knows what Tkachuk could become when he reaches the same point in his career.
Versus Larkin
The two are similar in age and style of leadership. Larkin outguns Tkachuk on point production hands down, yet Tkachuk has unrealized offensive upside that may reveal itself on a much-improved Senators team this season. That, combined with his physicality, gives him the nod as a leader in my book.
Whether that’s true will be played out this season with the Red Wings and the Senators likely going toe-to-toe for one of the Atlantic’s three playoff spots. That battle will reveal which of the two is the better captain.
Versus Suzuki
Suzuki is still a work in progress as compared to Tkachuk’s more fully formed identity as a captain. He’s an excellent two-way centre with high hockey IQ, exceptional skating, and elite playmaking ability. That contrasts with Tkachuk’s style of play – highly skilled to be sure, but more physical and grinding than Suzuki’s. As for leadership style, Suzuki is quiet, preferring to lead by example.
Fans will see the measure of both him and Tkachuk as captains next spring with both teams expected to be waging war for a playoff spot in the Atlantic. That battle could define both as leaders.
Versus Hedman
If being a captain were just about play on the ice, Hedman would best Tkachuk hands down. Sporting two Stanley Cup rings on his fingers, and his resume boasting the Norris Trophy (best defenceman 2018) and Conn Smythe Trophy (most valuable player in the playoffs, 2020), there’s not much to argue about in a comparison between him and Tkachuk.
Yet wearing the “C” on your sweater is about much more than skill. Hedman is entering just his second year as Lightning captain leading a team desperate to prove they’re still a Cup contender. Whether Hedman can lead his team back to a Cup Final this year will speak volumes about his status as a captain in the Atlantic.
Versus Matthews
Tkachuk and Matthews are polar opposites as NHL captains go. The Leafs captain doesn’t show much emotion either on or off the ice. In fact, when he was made captain back in Aug. 2024 it didn’t seem that management cared much about his leadership style at all. As Leafs’ head coach Craig Berube put it, “He just needs to be himself and go out and play at a high level like he does. Obviously, there’s other things being the captain now that you’ve gotta’ take care of but those are all things that we’ll talk about.”
Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
Matthews as captain hasn’t gone down well with many Leafs fans. Much of that is owing to the team’s continuing playoff struggles even with Matthews as captain. This season, criticism of him has sharpened with the Buds at time of writing, sitting in seventh place in the Atlantic. Matthews’ poor standing as captain among many of the Toronto faithful is glaring next to the revered status Tkachuk enjoys in Bytown.
It’s true that Matthews can boast the 2017 Calder Trophy (rookie of the year), the 2022 Hart Trophy (most valuable player) and three Rocket Richard Trophies as the NHL’s leading goal scorer. While all of that helps to establish his bona fides as a Leafs captain, none of it will cement his status as one of the great ones. At least not in the tradition of Wendel Clark, Darryl Sittler, Dave Keon or George Armstrong. That is, unless he can lead the Leafs out of the Stanley Cup desert in which they’ve wandered for 58 seasons.
All things considered, I say Tkachuk beats Matthews as the better captain.
Versus Dahlin
Dahlin captains the unfailingly awful Buffalo Sabres. It’s doubtful that even Jesus as captain could redeem this team. So, it seems unfair to compare the 25-year-old Dahlin, in just his second season as Sabres captain to anyone, much less Tkachuk. Judge not, lest ye be judged, as the saying goes.
Dahlin may show he’s Tkachuk’s equal as captain someday, but only if his team can do what the Senators have done with Tkachuk as captain. That’s a return to respectability.
The Verdict on Tkachuk as Senators’ Captain
Ottawa has not yet won consistently under Tkachuk’s captaincy. Nor does Tkachuk possess the pedigree that two consecutive Stanley Cups have bestowed upon Barkov. Not only that, but as one of the youngest captains in the Atlantic Division, it’s clear Tkachuk needs to develop further as a leader. Discipline and a mastery of his own emotions are what he needs the most.
Whether Tkachuk is one of the Atlantic’s top captains is subjective. Different teams need different leaders at different times. Yet despite his lack of championship rings and trophies, among Atlantic Division captains he possesses the ability to shape a team’s identity and drive its culture. On the ice his impact for the Senators is undeniable.
Tkachuk isn’t the division’s best captain right now, but he’s one of its top leaders. Someday, he may lay claim to being its best. Soon his leadership could be defined by the Senators’ victories – not just by the influence he wields over his teammates.
