The answer to who is the best American hockey player in the NHL might have felt obvious following Auston Matthews’ Hart Trophy campaign in 2021-22.
Today, it’s possible you’ll be offered a different name when posing that same question. That’s how good Matthew Tkachuk has been since joining the Florida Panthers from the Calgary Flames in a blockbuster deal last Summer.
This development has come as no surprise to Brady Tkachuk, Matthew’s younger brother, who also competes in the hard-fought Atlantic Division as captain of the Ottawa Senators.
Brady joined the FAN Morning Show on Thursday to detail what has already made his sibling a terror for the Toronto Maple Leafs through one game of their Eastern Conference semifinals.
“This is definitely going to be biased, but I think he’s the smartest player in the NHL,” said Brady.
“It’s just the plays he makes, even last game, just little skill plays where the puck is in his feet, he kicks it to his stick and all of a sudden, he’s making a play cross-ice to the off side. It’s just little plays like that where you can see it on video happen, but when you’re playing, it’s just so hard to be able to make that play.”
It’s those little things that Brady credits when discussing Matthew’s impact on the Panthers. From preparation to execution, no detail in between is omitted, and that was the difference for a club that scraped into the playoffs.
“He just stepped up and quite frankly, the Florida Panthers wouldn’t be where they are if it wasn’t for Matthew,” added Brady. “So, it’s carried over and he’s just doing it day in and day out, which has been impressive not only as a brother, but somebody in the hockey world to see somebody take that next step and kind of find that next level when it matters the most.”
While Brady made headlines for supporting his brother in the stands during a prior playoff run with the Flames, the Senators captain is keeping it more low-key this time around.
“I’m going to cheer him on from afar now,” he said, though Brady did attend Florida’s epic Game 6 win against Boston.
“I want to be in that position next year. I want to be able to be playing in May and so I want to start doing whatever it takes now. (Watching Game 6) was definitely a different experience, a different motivation for you to see that and see their fan base and how passionate everyone was come playoff time. That’s something I want to provide to Ottawa.”
Those Senators have managed to stay in the headlines even if they aren’t competing for the Stanley Cup this season. With Snoop Dogg’s name now in the mix alongside Ryan Reynolds in the chase to acquire the Canadian NHL franchise, the buzz is palpable.
“That’s just pretty cool to see,” said Tkachuk. “Two really popular people interested in our team. Of course, don’t know much of what’s going on, but just to hear their names correlate with Ottawa — it’s pretty cool.”
Catch The FAN Morning Show with Ailish Forfar and Justin Cuthbert weekdays from 6 AM to 9 AM ET on the FAN 590 and download the podcast!