Tkachuk in 'dream spot' with Panthers, set for All-Star Game with Brady

DETROIT -- Matthew Tkachuk has found a home with the Florida Panthers. The 25-year-old forward leads them in goals (20), assists (28) and points (48), playing some of the best hockey of his NHL career.

Now he will play in the 2023 Honda NHL All-Star Game before his home fans at FLA LIVE Arena in Sunrise, Florida, on Feb. 4 (3 p.m. ET; ABC, ESPN+, CBC, SN, TVAS), and he'll do it with his brother, Ottawa Senators forward Brady Tkachuk.
The Tkachuks played against each other in the 2020 NHL All-Star Game in St. Louis, where their father, Keith, once played for the St. Louis Blues. But they will be on the same team this time, representing the Atlantic Division in the 3-on-3 tournament.
Tkachuk said they always dreamed of playing together but thought it would probably be for the United States in international competition. They will be the first siblings to play on the same team in an NHL All-Star Game since
Daniel
and
Henrik Sedin
in Ottawa in 2012.
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Their parents are "very, very, very excited," Tkachuk said, but their sister, Taryn, is probably the most excited.
"Our buddies are pumped," Tkachuk said before the Panthers defeated the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 at Little Caesars Arena on Friday. "Grandparents are excited. Everybody's coming in."
Maybe they can borrow his Jet Ski. He said he has one at his house on the water, mostly for visitors.
Yeah, while Tkachuk is quick to say the Panthers (18-18-4) would like to be higher than seventh in the Atlantic, life has been good for him in Florida.
"For myself personally, it's a dream spot for me to play," Tkachuk said. "The team has been unbelievable, the guys in the room, everybody in the organization.
"It's an honor to play in the NHL, but when you get to play exactly where you want to play, in the city that is one of the best, probably the best, to play in in the NHL, it's been a great, great change for myself."
Tkachuk spent his first six seasons with the Calgary Flames, who selected him No. 6 in the 2016 NHL Draft. He set NHL career highs in goals (42), assists (62) and points (104) last season.
But as a restricted free agent, he told them he didn't want to sign a long-term contract with them. They traded him to the Panthers for forward Jonathan Huberdeau and defenseman MacKenzie Weeger on July 25, and he agreed to an eight-year contract through 2029-30.
He's on pace for 41 goals, 57 assists and 98 points this season.
"I can see how his game's grown, his confidence with the puck and making plays," said Panthers center Sam Bennett, who also played with Tkachuk on the Flames.
"He really has a knack for getting to the net and getting in front of the net. I'd say he's one of the best players in the League at getting in front of the net and finding pucks loose around the net. You've got to give him credit. It's a hard area to go to, and he loves going there."
Panthers coach Paul Maurice he said thought he knew Tkachuk as a player. He used to coach the Winnipeg Jets, who used to face the Flames regularly and lost to them 3-1 in the best-of-5 Stanley Cup Qualifiers in 2020. But he said he didn't appreciate Tkachuk's hands.
"The idea of him is, he's an agitator, he's a hard man, he plays a power forward game, and it's true," Maurice said. "But his hands are in-traffic hands. They're net-front hands. It's not really bowling guys over or running people from all over the ice. What he can do in tight areas is incredible."

Maurice said he didn't appreciate Tkachuk as a person, either, until he got to know him. He said Tkachuk took the trainers out to dinner the first week he was in Florida.
"He's really impressive around a room," Maurice said. "He's one of those kids that grew up in an NHL locker room and took all the good things out of that experience and none of the bad.
"For a guy that at [25] is playing in an All-Star Game, that puts up the points, he gets a big paycheck, there's no entitlement to his game. He's very coachable, very open to talking about hockey. From a coach's point of view, it's been a great experience working with him."
Panthers general manager Bill Zito said in many ways Tkachuk has come as advertised, and his on-ice contribution has been well-chronicled. But the off-ice, behind-the-scenes stuff makes this even more special.
"He is the guy you've seen," Zito said. "He is a brash, hard-working, competitive guy. But at the same time, he's kind, gracious. He thinks about things before he talks [and is] very interested in growing the game. He'll do anything in the community. [He's] wonderful with the kids and sincere. He's a guy that likes to have fun.
"In short, he loves hockey, and he's a great, great person, and I think honestly I'm as proud of him as a person as I am [of him] as a player."