WASHINGTON Besides being proficient at the work they do, NHL trainers also need to be efficient. Timeline s is key when it comes to patching upa player'sbumps and bruisesand getting him in good enough shape to resumeregular shifts. It's a reality thatFlames forward Matthew Tkachuk knows all too well. The 20-year-old, now with two seasons of NHL experience to his resume, has shown a tendency to stick his nose in places where it could be compromised or worse,bloodied. Matthew's younger brother Brady has known these conditions to a le ser degree, but the ante will be upped when he makes the jump to the NHL. That could come as early as next season, after Brady was selected fourth overall by theSenators in the 2018 NHL Draft. Exceptit's nota concept unfamiliar to Brady at all. Rewind to their childhood, which included manynights spent in the wives'room of St. Louis'then-named Savvis Centerwhile dad Keith scored 143 goals for the Blues acro s parts of six seasons. NHL DRAFT 2018: | Brothers will be brothers, and hockey brothers will be even more brotherly. So during one of those nights, the Tkachuk boys started a two-on-two game with mini sticks, a regular occurrence for them. But on this particular night, a Tkachuk-on-Tkachuk crime Matthew checking Brady from behind launched younger brotherface-first into the couch. The metaphorical gloves were dropped. Twenty minutes later, Brady still dripping bloodas a consequenceof that illegal check, a Blues trainer was called into action to stitch up the gash. "The wives were just hanging out, talking to one another," Brady said, because Tkachuk boys will be Tkachuk boys. "You just take it." Such was life for the Brady and Matthewgrowing up in St. Louis, punishing each other physically, pushing each other mentally, and chasing a hockey dream they lived vicariously through their father, a 500-goal scorer and a member of the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. Those formative years, Brady said,helped mold a player the Senators are hoping can help revive . MORE: It wasn't just Matthew and dad Keith that Brady had to lean on, though. Their running mates and childhood po se included Clayton Keller, Luke Kunin, Logan Brown and Trent Frederic, a hyper-skilled group of aspiring youth players all born within 21 months of each other andall living in close proximity in Mi souri. Tre McKitty Jersey They competed on many of the same teams, birthdays breaking them up into separate groups, and also touted an equally qualified coaching staff, spearheaded by a trio of former NHLers Keith Tkachuk, Jeff Brown (Logan's father) and Al MacInnis. "We were fortunate enough to have some good teams growing up," Matthew said. "Enough to compete with teams from areas like Toronto, Michigan and Minnesota. Obviously when people think of St. Louis, hockey wasnt the first thing that comes to mind, but we produced a lot of great players in the past couple of years." The le sons they learned were perhaps subtle in the moment, but ingrained a new line of codeinto each player's hockey microproce sor, impre sing upon them the small things to do to become succe sful profe sional players. Keller, who scored 11 goals in the first 16 games of his rookie NHL season and finished third in Calder voting, can appreciate now what he learned so long ago, a mentor like Keith Tkachuk to guide him during his own formative years. MORE: "He always told Mike Williams Jersey us to shoot somewhere other than high glove or high blocker," Keller said. "He wanted us to shoot to other areas of the net than that. We all kind of thought he was crazy at the time because everyone loved getting the puck off the ice. "He was great and really helped our team and each player a lot." The Tkachuk boys taught each other plenty of le sons, too. They were wildly competitive, be it in the wive's room, the driveway or the Blues' locker room. "It just allowed me to have somebody to play the sport with every single day, just be competitive in the house," Matthew said. "Were still competitive in anything we do." It extended throughout their entire friend group, a bunch of kids living in the Midwest who believed their hockey dreams could become reality, pushing each other to see who could score the most goals, who could finish first in a drill,who could be the best. "It was a really special group," Keller said. "We were a really motivated group and always had good skill.We all knew each other really well, and all skated together, and were all really good friends. Its really special to see all of us get drafted and make our mark in the NHL." MORE: The competitivene s seeps through when watching Brady or Matthew play. They have a certain airabout their style, which some might choose to characterize with colorful, anatomical language. To players who embody that type of role, it's one of the highest forms of compliment. "I wouldnt say hes a pest around the house, but hes an aggravator ," Brady said, using another A-word todescribeMatthew. "Thats what our extended family calls him. Hes such a great guy, and were really close, so I kind oflove seeing it, because I like to be the same way." Keller knows the type. "Brady gets under guys skin," he said. "Ive seen him do it when he was 14." Brady said Matthew is the better trash-talker. But Matthewsaid that after Brady was selected fourth two spots higher than the Flames took the older Tkachuk brother in the 2016 draft there was no pointing out that fact. "I mean, if he gave me a hard time about it, I would come back with, I dont know, something," Matthew said. "But well see if he plays, soon, and then we can start talking." SN EXCLUSIVE: That brings up another question in Brady's development arch. He hasn't announced where he'll spend the 2018-19 season, and he's yet to sign an entry-level contract. Hecould return to Boston University for his freshman season. At 18 years old (19 in September), he could also spend the entire year in AHL Belleville and still see his entry-level contractslide to 2019-20 or play 10 or more games with Ottawa at the NHL level and burn that first year. There have also been rumors he could head to OHL London, where the Knights own his rights, especially after Brady's freshman-year coach, David Quinn, left Boston University to take the Rangers' head-coaching gig this summer. "Ultimately its just his decision," Matthew said. "Everyone is kind of looking at me and my dad and hoping that we influence him a little bit, but its ultimately up to him." At Senators development camp, if Brady had any inkling of what sweater he would wear next season, he played it close to his chest, like, "Im going to take it day by day," and "Im going to take slow. There is no rush." Keller's amateur resume reads eerily similar to Brady's, from the minor midget teams in St. Louis,to two years with the Mark Webb Jr. Jersey U.S.National Development Team Program, to a year on the campus of Boston University. "It just comes down to how you felt the year before and if you think youre ready," said Keller, who scored 21 goals and 45 points in his lone season as a collegiate. "After one year at BU I felt that I was ready, and my body was ready, and I was ready to take the next step. Your mind has to be 100 percent toward that. You cant have any second gue Keenan Allen Jersey ses. Brady will do the same exact thing; whatever hes thinking, hes going to do." But there's no lack of confidence or belief in ability when it comes to Tkachuk's game. When some tried to typecast him as a pure agitator, in a similar ilk to his brother, Brady was quick to defend the other selling points of his gameduring the pre-draft proce s. "Ive had people say Im just kind of gritty, but I feel I have a lot of skill," he said. "I have one of the best skill sets in the draft. I can definitely beat a [defenseman] wide with my speed and skills, too. I pride myself on the physicality and competitivene s, but I definitely feel I can back it up with skill too." MORE: Tkachuk'sfreshman scoring numbers were not eye-popping. Even as one of the youngest players in all of the NCAA, he tied for seventhamong those collegiate newcomers in scoring, with 31 points in 40 games. But his point-per-game rate of 0.78 is on par with some recent college freshman like Blake Wheeler (.080), AlexTuch(0.76) andChrisKreider(0.75). Tkachuk's biggest moment of his draft-eligible season camenot in a college rink, and not even indoors at all. During the 2018 World Junior Championships, Team USA squared off against Canada in the snow at Buffalo's New Era Field in a showdown between the two rivals. With the U.S. trailing 3-2 in the third period, Tkachuk scored to tie things up. He also converted later in the shootout to help secure the victory behind a snowy backdrop. "He's going to be a great player at the NHL level. He has all the tools," Quinn said. "I know people get enamored with his physical play, but he's a talented player. He has great skill, he has great vision, he skates well, and there's an awful lot there." It was a huge moment for bothplayer andfamily in what's been a whirlwind couple of years in the Tkachuk household. Things were always hectic growing up, but they've taken on a different form with two brothers becoming NHL draft picks in quick succe sion. "And our sister is probably the most athletic in our family, too, so theyre busy with her," Matthew said of sister Taryn, a high school field hockey star. "Were a sports family, so thats what we get and who we are." Keeping up with such a high level of competition can cause stre sfor any family, butMatthew's uncanny ability to repulse opponents exposes a whole new level of anxiety.He already has been suspended two games , which later led Doughty to say Tkachuk . It hasn't always made for an enjoyable viewing experience for their mother, Chantal. MORE: "Ive definitely watched a couple of [Matts] games with her, and shes pretty stre sful," Brady said. "I dont know what shes going to be like if Matt and I play against each other. I definitely know shell be pretty stre sed." It could also make Brady a natural target when he does break into the NHL, guilty by a sociation. "Well see when I get there," Brady said. "My family thinks Im tougher than him, and Matthews not Michael Bandy Jersey me sing with me anymore. If thats a mark, Ill have to deal with it." If anything, for years, he's had a great litmus test in brother Matthew when it comes to "dealing with it." The third-year Flames forward has already provenhimself to be one of the league's most effective thorns, and when it comes to brothers, no one else knows quite how to push someone's buttons. But make no mistake: The Tkachuk boys know it's a weapon in their arsenal one thatcomes with certain benefits, even with such a physical toll. MORE: "We dont really think about it too much; it kind of just comes with the way we play," Matthew said. "Maybe it comes from growing up and playing with each other, but it creates more room for us, and it ultimately makes us produce more." So much of what has made Brady Tkachuk who he is and has helped him to get to this point falls into the same category. There were countle s teaching moments, unspoken knowledge pa sed down fromdad, calluses on his hockey psyche courtesy of a perpetual sibling rivalry, his skills constantly challenged bypeers. At the end of each of those youth seasons, the Tkachuks would invite the entire team over to their residence for a celebratory get-together. "They had a pretty nice setup there with a rink in the basement and a nice driveway," Keller said. To this day, Keller said he still watches some of those videos, and did so recently this offseason. "I dont think any of us would be where we are today without those guys," he said.