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Welcome back to another post
Media senators one on one.

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I'm very pleased to be joined by

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hockey writer Colin Fraser
of the Ottawa Citizen.

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And today we're going
to break down the.

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We'll start off draft
week, by the way,

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by breaking down the trade of

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Brady Tkachuk for three
first round picks,

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including a protected
top 20, uh,

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number 29 pick from
the Florida Panthers,

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a second round pick in 2030,

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and number nine to number
25 in this year's draft,

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the first round being held
on Friday night in Buffalo.

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Uh, Callum, the most shocking,

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more shocking than Brady Tkachuk

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being traded to the
Florida Panthers,

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which is not shocking in
the big scheme of things,

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would be if the senators

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actually selected
number nine. Callum.

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Yeah. I mean, this trade
was, you know, twofold.

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It was one status, I think,

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getting as much as he
possibly could out of a very,

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very small list of teams

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that was acceptable for
Brady to be traded to.

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And of course, as you reported,

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that might have been a list
of one at the end of the day.

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Right. So it's it's one
you get a lot of assets.

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Actually, for someone who
made it very clear to

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a select number of
people that he no

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longer wanted to be
an Ottawa senator.

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And on top of that,
it's you know,

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the second part of that is

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it's likely that
there's going to be

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1 or 2 picks that
they're probably

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not going to use
because they need

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to get better right away.

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Like this team is,

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is not going to be content with,

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you know, waiting on
certain players to develop.

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Right. You also have to
convince Tim Stutzle,

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Jake Anderson, uh, Shane Pinto,

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a lot of these guys in
the team that, hey,

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you're not going to have
to wait 3 or 4 more years

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to actually be a contender.

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We want to be a contender
starting in October.

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So, you know, there's a lot
of names out there, Bruce.

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You'd know better than me.

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You know which ones are more
likely to be actual targets.

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Because I know that, you know,

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part of this conversation is

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likely going to be
about, you know,

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whether or not Ottawa
can be a destination

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for star players in the NHL.

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Um, but they need
to get something,

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whether that's two
solid forwards or

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that top six winger that

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they've been looking
for all along.

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Um, and they have other
pieces to use as well.

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We'll see what
happens. But yeah,

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I'm with you here.

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Um these simply feel more

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like assets that Steve
stores can use to

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find a player that is
in their mid 20s and

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potentially going to be
an Ottawa senator for

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a very long time and
contribute in big ways.

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I mean, they could
have gone one of

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two ways here, Callum.

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They could have made
Brady Tkachuk play out

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the final two years of his
contract as an Ottawa senator.

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Uh, clearly, when Steve
Styles met with Brady Tkachuk

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in New Jersey last month after
the World Championships,

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it was made clear to him that

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Brady Tkachuk had no
intention of resigning here.

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Uh, for the last four years,

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he's told his teammates in
that dressing room that he

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had no intention
of resigning here,

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that he was not going to be

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here after this
contract expired,

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that Jake Sanderson would

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could essentially
put on the sea.

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Um, I think that
you have to look

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at the situation that

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they were in and the
decision to react.

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Now, the problem is right
now, let's be honest,

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this looks like an
awful trade because you

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didn't get Lundell or
Verhaeghe in return.

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Two guys they tried to
get, you didn't get.

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And I hate using
the term warm body,

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but you didn't get a warm body.

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But if you can turn 9 or 25

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or both into a player

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that can help this
team immediately,

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then it's going to look
like a better deal.

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Yeah, and it seems like the
clock is ticking, right?

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Like now we've got
on top of that

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to like what's even more,

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um, you know, intriguing to
potential trade partners.

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It's being able to
make that pick, right?

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It's not just prospects

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that were taken
high in the draft.

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It's, you know, having

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that autonomy to figure
out exactly what position,

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what player, what whatever type

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of player you want to
take in the draft.

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So right now, I mean,

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it should feel imminent, right,

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that Steve is going to make

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a pretty big another
pretty big splash

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in the next 3 or 4 days.

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You know, I think that, um,

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and I do believe that they
are in a. Mason McTavish.

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I do believe that the
Montreal Canadiens are in on

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Mason McTavish of the
Anaheim Ducks as well.

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His father works for
the organization.

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There are differing
opinions amongst

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NHL executives on what impact

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Mason can make with this team.

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Um, the the Pittsburgh Penguins

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have made it clear that they

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want to move up in the draft.

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Uh, I do believe that the
center showed some interest

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in Rickard Rakell and
Bryan Rust last season.

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Um, is that a route they go?

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Um, now that that Brady Tkachuk
is no longer in the room.

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A few years ago, the
senators visited

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a trade for Erik Karlsson.

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The decision was
made that they would

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not acquire Erik Karlsson

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from the Pittsburgh
Penguins because

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they felt that that
would undermine,

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uh, Brady Chuck's leadership in

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the dressing room by bringing
in a former captain.

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Do you maybe go that route
now and maybe bring in

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a guy like, uh, like Erik?

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Do you bring him back to
finish out his career?

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There's a lot of moving parts
with this roster right now.

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Um, but time is of the essence,

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and I don't want to get
too much into names

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because I think by,

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by Thursday, this video
is going to be dead.

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Uh, one way or another.

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Um, where, where are
you at on all of this?

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Well, by the way, I think that's

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the first time I ever
said that Karlsson thing.

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We got a scoop for
the listeners.

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All right. Honestly, Bruce,

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that sounded like
a dozen scoops,

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uh, in the past couple of
minutes from you there.

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Uh, it's an impressive run.

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Um, where I'm at with this is.

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I like hearing the different

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names from you
around the league.

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That's really interesting to me.

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Where I'm most intrigued
is what additional assets,

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because I don't think
that you can just use

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the number nine pick to get

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the player that you want, right?

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Or even potentially
even the number nine

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and number 25 pick, right.

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Like I think what is
putting Steve Davis in

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a much better spot than where he

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possibly could have been
is how well the Sens.

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De Corps played this past year,

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and specifically how
well Jordan Spence

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played and how well
Carter Yakimchuk played.

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I don't think they're going
to deal Carter Yakimchuk,

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but it just means
that, you know,

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you have another guy
that's ready to step in

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and potentially play power play,

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you know, can can hopefully turn

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into a more of a
two way defender.

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Right. And then there's
the question of Artem Zub,

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um, whether or not they want
to trade that piece as well.

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So you up top honestly
in the forward corps,

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I think it's more difficult to

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trade certain players right now.

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Um but you have a lot
of assets in the decor

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that even if you were to
not get a defenseman back,

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your decor is still looking very

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good for the next season
and beyond, right?

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Like they're not going to
trade a guy like Tyler Colvin.

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Likely. And good
thing because he's

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he's been improving,
improving, improving.

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And Jace Anderson is going to be

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a top three defenseman probably

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in the world by next year.

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Right. Like they
have options to,

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you know, send
players elsewhere.

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And then also, you know,

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pad pad their decor

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in using players that

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they have developed over
the past couple of years.

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So I think that has some assets,

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um, where if he
were to deal them,

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the team would not
be worse for it.

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Well, I think one of

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the names that he could
attach to a trade,

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quite frankly, is Jordan Spence.

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I don't believe that
the organization

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I think that Spence wants

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a four year deal at a in
excess of 5 million a year.

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And I don't believe
the organization

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has any intention
of paying him that.

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I believe that they have had

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informal conversations
with Artem Zub's camp

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on an extension that,

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you know, the elephant in
the room, quite frankly,

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is, is Drake Batherson you know,

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the the departure of of,

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of Brady Tkachuk sends a message
to the rest of the room.

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And this is where

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they feel their room is
better off without them.

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Okay. Sure. Uh,
if you're better,

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if your room is better off with

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one of one of your best players,

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that's fine with me.

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But you better replace

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that best player and you are

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already looking for
a top six forward.

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And whatever you do,

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Callum is going to send a
message to the likes of of

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Drake Batherson and Artem
Zub and and Thomas Chabot,

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who are all approaching

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unrestricted free agency on

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on where this
organization is going.

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Yeah. And on top of
that too, Bruce,

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I also think you need
to convince guys

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who are signed to long
term contracts, right?

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Like what's what's stopping

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certain players from pulling

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a Brady Tkachuk pulling
a Dylan Larkin.

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Right. Like we all talk about

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how there's a lot more
American players,

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especially the ones on that
US national team that are now

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wanting out and wanting
to compete with

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either their buddies or
just saying, you know what?

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I'm sick and tired of not
being on a contender.

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I want to play, you know,

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into June every single year.

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And for me, like
exit interviews,

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I know we didn't get a chance
to speak to Jake Sanderson,

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but exit interviews and how
we've kind of seen players,

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um, you know, act and,

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and, and talk about the city.

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Like I'm pretty confident
that Tim Stutzle

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and Jake Sanderson and Shane
Pinto want to be here,

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but who's, you know,

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who's to say that that won't
change in a year's time.

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Right. So you're totally right.

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You need to convince

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certain players that are
about to sign contracts,

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but you also need to
convince guys that could

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be the core for the next
decade on this team.

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Well, and I guess

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00:10:17,440 --> 00:10:19,820
it remains to be seen
what happens this week,

255
00:10:19,820 --> 00:10:21,580
but we'll keep an eye
on everything here

256
00:10:21,580 --> 00:10:23,500
at the Ottawa Citizen for Sens.

257
00:10:23,500 --> 00:10:27,260
One on one. I'm Bruce
Garrioch with Callum Fraser.