The day of Matthew Tkachuk’s introductory press conference in Sunrise he answered
questions on a wide range of topics. He discussed how the trade materialized from his
perspective. He talked about the collective age and culture of the team he was joining
and, of course, mentioned the beautiful weather and lifestyle of South Florida.
As he responded to each inquiry — skillfully side-stepping a few — the theme of
winning surfaced over and over. Winning in South Florida. Winning in a Panthers jersey.
“I’m here to be the last team standing,” he said.
Let’s transport back to about a week before that moment. Bill Zito was still a relatively
green general manager with just two seasons of experience leading the Panthers’ front
office — one of which was shortened due to the pandemic. He had just decided to move
on from a Presidents’ Trophy winning interim head coach in Andrew Brunette and opted
to bring in the most accomplished coach to never win a thing, Paul Maurice — a
decision that was heavily critiqued by national media and local fans.
Zito was staring at roster with two marquee players, Jonathan Huberdeau and
MacKenzie Weegar, entering the final year of their contracts and a cloud of doubt
hanging over the long-term future of both. Huberdeau was coming off a franchise-best
115-point season in which he set the NHL record for assists by a winger. Weegar had
developed from a seventh round longshot into one of the best overall defensemen on
the roster.
And then, like a pop-up storm fed by the Everglades heat, Zito sent a thunderbolt
through the entire hockey world. After days of speculation and trade discussions,
Tkachuk had finally found his ticket out of Calgary. It wasn’t St. Louis or Vegas or
Tampa Bay or New York, as many expected, but South Florida. At the top of his list were the
Florida Panthers.
Zito traded a franchise cornerstone, a top pairing defenseman, a prospect, and a first
round pick for a player that most of the NHL despised. An agitator. A pest.
A rat.
Tkachuk’s reputation preceded him. At the time, his seemingly uncontrollable
antics painted him as a league villain and overshadowed his enormous offensive skill.
His mouth and “punchable face” won more headlines than his on-ice play.
He was exactly what the Panthers needed. Until Tkachuk arrived, even when the
Cats were good, they were not difficult to play against. Zito was on a mission to
change that with additions like Patric Hornqvist and Radko Gudas. He was trying to
insulate a skilled roster with grit, toughness, and mean. In Tkachuk, he got it all
wrapped up into one player. He got a young player on the precipice of becoming a man
— of becoming a leader.
And he got the ultimate competitor. When Tkachuk nonchalantly mentioned that his goal
was to be the last team standing, he didn’t just mean it figuratively. He meant it
physically. This is a man that will stand on the skulls of his enemies if it gives him an
opportunity to sip from Lord Stanley’s Cup. Tkachuk is a player with an infectious desire
to win at all costs and with the leadership ability to drag every one of his teammates into
the muck together and come out on the other side stronger.
You may have heard these intangibles and descriptors of Tkachuk in the days following
the trade. You may not have believed it. In sports, we always listen to the general
manager gush over his shiny new acquisition. We’ve all heard the coach speak. It so
rarely lives up to the hype or delivers on its promises. Fired general managers are often
remembered for such claims (remember Dale Tallon’s “blueprint” and more recently the
“Shanaplan” in Toronto?).
Zito and Tkachuk delivered — not solely on their own, of course. The entire cast has
been electric from top-to-bottom throughout the organization. It is never just one player
or one decision that leads to a championship, but the addition of Tkachuk was seismic
and the reverberations have affected every team in the NHL.
The statistics since Tkachuk donned the Panther red are stellar. 254 points in 211
regular season games. 69 points in 67 playoff games. He is producing like a superstar.
However, where Tkachuk leads is in his willingness to sacrifice his personal health for
the benefit of the team. In 2023, he attempted to play in the Stanley Cup Final with a
broken sternum. Prior to his latest Stanley Cup run, he tore his adductor from the bone
during the 4 Nations Tournament. After trying to play through it in the final against
Canada, he missed the remainder of the regular season — yet still returned for the first
round matchup with Tampa Bay.
Should he have? Probably not. It was clear that Tkachuk was not fully healthy. He did
though. He caught heat for it, too. There was a lot of discussion about whether he was
hurting the Panthers more than he was helping.
The results now tell the full story. Tkachuk, playing most of the postseason on one leg,
didn’t just produce, he eventually thrived. After putting up just nine points in the first two
series, he notched 14 points against Carolina and Edmonton — finishing the
postseason tied with Carter Verhaeghe and Sam Reinhart for the team lead with 23.
In his three years, Tkachuk has yet to have his season end before the Stanley Cup
Finals. He has refused to allow the Panthers to slip out of the fight, any fight. Zito’s
vision and Tkachuk’s growth poured jet fuel on a burgeoning identity, welcoming culture,
and spirited locker room. He was, and remains still, the key ingredient.
And for the second straight season, he’s on the last team — barely standing.