Brady Tkachuk booed as Senators rout Panthers 5-1: Atlantic Division roundup

There were no Atlantic Division games on Thursday’s schedule, but Wednesday night’s drama is still echoing around the division, headlined by Brady Tkachuk’s first game back in Ottawa as a member of the Florida Panthers.

Tkachuk’s hostile Ottawa return, Senators roll Panthers 5-1

Sportsnet reports that Ottawa Senators fans spent the night booing former captain Brady Tkachuk, who had requested a trade to the Florida Panthers in the off-season. According to Sportsnet and La Presse, the crowd’s fury framed a convincing 5-1 Senators win over Florida, complete with chants like “We don’t need you!” and, as Daily Faceoff notes, multiple Tkachuk jerseys thrown onto the ice.

Sportsnet adds that Tkachuk was booed even during his tribute video, scored a power play goal that immediately sparked a fight between Boko Imama and Hayden Hodgson off the ensuing faceoff, and also took a roughing penalty against Nick Cousins in a heated game. The Hockey News and Daily Faceoff highlight how explicit and intense many of the anti‑Tkachuk chants were. Earlier in the day, Tkachuk had outlined his reasons for leaving Ottawa, something we already summarized yesterday on our site.

It wasn’t all good news for Ottawa. Per Sportsnet and Daily Faceoff, starter Linus Ullmark exited the game against Florida with an apparent injury after seeming to tweak something while making a save. Offensively, Sportsnet notes that Shane Pinto chipped in his second goal of the season on a partial breakaway that just trickled over the goal line.

Sabres sunk in Philly, Bruins extend Khusnutdinov

In Buffalo, the latest result was another setback. La Presse and Sportsnet report that the Sabres lost 3-1 in Philadelphia on Wednesday, with Flyers rookie Cole Knuble scoring his first and second NHL goals to power the home side. Buffalo sits seventh in the Atlantic at 4-4-2, with 10 points in 10 games.

At the top of the division, the Boston Bruins (first with 15 points in 10 games) are securing a piece of their future core. According to The Hockey Writers, the Bruins have signed forward Marat Khusnutdinov to a three-year contract extension worth US$11.85 million, with an annual cap hit announced by the team.

Around Montreal: Rocket rolling, Dobeš under scrutiny

In the Canadiens pipeline, Eyes on the Prize notes that the Laval Rocket’s offence is driving a six-game winning streak, with the team debuting new alternate jerseys at Place Bell to mark its 10th anniversary. The same outlet points to continued fallout from the Canadiens’ overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks, highlighting a costly mistake by goalie Jakub Dobeš and a Martin St-Louis who, while not yet worried, is clearly unhappy with how that game slipped away.