Senators’ Brady Tkachuk has surgery for thumb injury, out six to eight weeks

The Ottawa Senators’ captain will be out even longer than initially expected.

Brady Tkachuk underwent surgery for his right hand injury and will miss six to eight weeks, the team announced on Thursday.

It initially looked as though Tkachuk was set to miss at least four weeks, but with the player opting for surgery, the timeline for a return has been extended.

Senators owner Michael Andlauer told reporters on Wednesday that the team was seeking a second opinion to determine if surgery would be required.

Tkachuk appeared to injure his right hand Monday night when he was cross-checked into the boards by Nashville Predators defenceman Roman Josi five minutes into their game. Coach Travis Green told reporters Tuesday that Tkachuk would be out a “significant†amount of time with what the team was calling an upper-body injury.

He stayed in the game, a 4-1 loss to the Predators, before leaving midway through the third period. Green estimated Tkachuk would be out for four weeks.

The 26-year-old has been a key player for the Senators in recent years. Through three games this season, he has three assists and 10 hits.

Last season, Tkachuk posted 29 goals and 26 assists through 72 games while laying 228 hits and firing 296 shots on goal. He added four goals and three assists in the Senators’ six-game first-round loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the playoffs.

Over his eight-year career, all of which has been spent in Canada’s capital, Tkachuk has 191 goals and 216 assists in 515 games.

He was one of six players named to the preliminary U.S. Olympic men’s hockey roster. The tournament in Italy is set to run Feb. 11-22.

–with files from The Associated Press

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