Tim Stutzle takes a subtle shot at Brady Tkachuk?

The Ottawa Senators were left reeling this summer when team captain Brady Tkachuk effectively forced his way towards a trade with the Florida Panthers through the use of his no-movement clause, a move that left a fair number of fans feeling quite bitter.

The fans it seems however are not the only ones with those feelings.

In a recent interview, long time Tkachuk teammate Tim Stutzle made comments that some have interpreted as a less than charitable characterization of his former captain.

"As long as you all go for the same goal, I think at some point you’re going to achieve it," said Stutzle as per The Athletic. " I think also we have a lot of guys who want to be in Ottawa, so that’s what makes me excited."

There's no way of knowing what Stutzle's intent really was when he made those comments but it would certainly seem to fit a pattern of reporting we have heard around this situation. Earlier this summer NHL insider Elliotte Friedman reported that a player within the Senators locker room had personally reached out to him on the matter.

"The Tkachuk thing... it was time, it was time to end the noise around the whole situation," said Friedman earlier this summer. "A lot was going on and the players were tired of it and I did have someone who reached out to me, one of the players, and the only thing he felt we should have added was the podcast. The podcast caused some problems and it was just time."

"The podcast" is of course a reference to the now infamous segment in which Keith Tkachuk, Brady's father, appeared to criticize Brady's own teammates as he nodded along on the podcast hosted by both Brady and Matthew Tkachuk.

While Tkachuk's departure may have left the Senators with a giant hole to fill in their lineup, it may also prove to be the thing that galvanizes the rest of the players in that locker room as a team.