OTTAWA -- Brady Tkachuk will return to the lineup for the Ottawa Senators against the Carolina Hurricanes in their regular-season finale Thursday (7 p.m. ET; RDS, TSN5, FDSNSO).
"It's just going to be nice to finish off the regular season, finish off the grind that we've put ourselves through," the Ottawa captain said following the morning skate. "I've been feeling great. Started ramping it up this week and been feeling really good -- no issues, no problems. I think it's important to get a game in, get some touches."
Tkachuk, who leads the Senators with 29 goals and has 55 points in 71 games, missed eight games because of an upper-body injury after taking a hit from Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Ryan Graves on March 30. The forward is focused on getting quality reps ahead of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, specifically with puck battles and on the power play.
"But it's not going to be a feel-it-out, ease-it-out type of game," Tkachuk said. "I want to make sure that I'm 100 percent right. I'm going to play 100 percent tonight."
Tkachuk will play left wing alongside Tim Stutzle and Claude Giroux on the first line and will be the net-front presence on the first power-play unit.
"He's not the kind of player that just dips his toe in the water," coach Travis Green said. "I don't want him going out there and just skating around. He's going to play and he's going to play for keeps and he's going to play for real."
Ottawa was 5-2-1 without Tkachuk, who will play in the postseason for the first time in his seven-season NHL career.
"I'm really excited," Stutzle said of Tkachuk's return. "No matter who he plays, he always gives you 100 percent and we've seen it at the 4 Nations [Face-Off]. He played an unbelievable tournament and really meaningful games for those guys [United States]. He's going to be a big factor for us again, and he's been [that] all year, even through some tough stretches, he's come out and played really hard. Really proud of him, how he handled the whole situation. I can't wait to see him back out there."
Ottawa will play the Toronto Maple Leafs in the best-of-7 Eastern Conference First Round. Game 1 will be played in Toronto on Sunday (7 p.m. ET; SN, CBC, TVAS, ESPN2).
The Senators hadn't qualified for the postseason since 2017.
"It's the last game before the big dance," Tkachuk said. "We want to be our best tonight. There's no easing into it. It's still a big game in our minds. It's still preparation, but to leave the regular season, with all the ups and downs that we've faced, to finish it off on a high is very important for us."
