Since the Panthers won their second consecutive championship in June, the Stanley Cup has seen it all, from the wee hours of the morning at Fort Lauderdale’s Elbo Room to the team’s raucous nightclub party in Miami.
But on Monday, the Panthers’ championship hardware was celebrated in the hometown of one of their biggest stars.
Panthers winger Matthew Tkachuk returned to his childhood home of St. Louis on Monday, making stops all across town with the Stanley Cup, including the St. Louis Children’s Hospital.
“It’s a really important place for myself and my family. We’ve been involved in children’s hospitals wherever I’ve been throughout my whole life,” Tkachuk said on a video the Panthers shared. “Even going back to my dad playing, he was really heavily involved, so when I was told that my day was today, the first thing we decided we wanted to do was bring it here to the Children’s Hospital.”
Born in Scottsdale, Arizona, Tkachuk’s family ended up in Missouri because of his father Keith Tkachuk, who played nine seasons for the St. Louis Blues in his 18-year NHL career. Matthew Tkachuk first visited the children’s hospital a year ago, after the Panthers’ first Stanley Cup.
Tkachuk’s visit left such an impression on him that, upon returning this week, he knew exactly where he wanted to stop.
“Normally they say save the best stop for last,” Tkachuk said, “But when it comes down to this, the best part of my day is this first stop. Seeing the kids, seeing their faces, seeing their smiles, it just brightens up your day.”
The visit also included stops at a local fire station and police department — where Tkachuk and the Stanley Cup even spent some time in the holding cell — and capped off a memorable weekend for Tkachuk, who was married to Ellie Connell on Saturday.
“Crazy few days, but a lot of fun, a lot of happy times,” Tkachuk said. “I’m just really excited to share it with family and friends.”
It has been an even crazier year for Tkachuk.
The 27-year-old completely tore his abductor muscle and sustained a sports hernia during the 4 Nations Face-Off in February, sidelining him for the remainder of the regular season.
With his injury status still up in the air mere days before the playoffs began, Tkachuk returned for the first-round series versus Tampa Bay and ended up scoring eight playoff goals on the way to consecutive Stanley Cup titles.
“For us to finish the job, it made it all worth it,” Tkachuk said. “Made that 2 1/2 months of just getting myself OK enough to play in the playoffs worth it. Those were some really tough days.”
Tkachuk added that he’s “still feeling a little of the effects” from the injury as he continues rehab before the season, when the Panthers begin their quest for a third straight Stanley Cup.
“It’s still so early in the summer, I haven’t really allowed myself to think too much about next year,” Tkachuk said. “But it’s incredible that July 1 — around that free agency time — we were able to bring mainly everybody back. The greatest asset you can have as a team is experience, and our team has it.”
