The real reason Alex DeBrincat forced a trade out of Ottawa.

Over the course of the summer it became very clear to fans of the Ottawa Senators that forward Alex DeBrincat would not be a part of the organization's future. In spite of the fact that the Senators paid a hefty price to acquire DeBrincat from the Chicago Blackhawks, the young forward seemingly had very little interest in remaining an Ottawa Senators for longer than he needed to.

With the organization in turmoil and going through a sale, you can understand why a player would want to go somewhere where his future is more certain, but as it turns out that had very little to do with DeBrincat's decision to force a trade out of Ottawa.

In a recent article for the Ottawa Sun, Senators insider Bruce Garrioch revealed that DeBrincat's unhappiness in Ottawa stemmed from his deployment and the deployment of one of his now former teammates.

From Garrioch:

Sources say he didn’t like his role as a second-line winger behind captain Brady Tkachuk. If that’s the case then DeBrincat really did have to go.

If it came down to a choice between Alex DeBrincat and Brady Tkachuk, a player the Senators had just signed to a long term deal and one that they had named their captain, then the Senators were really left with no choice at all. While many will still likely be critical of the miscalculation on the part of Senators general manager Pierre Dorion, the fact that DeBrincat pitted himself against the team's captain will likely shift at least part of the blame in the eyes of some fans.