On Wednesday, Tampere, Finland was Barkov City.
Aleksander Barkov spent his day with the Stanley Cup in his hometown, celebrating the Florida Panthers’ historic championship. With the victory, Barkov became the first Finnish-born NHL captain to earn the Stanley Cup.
Highlighted by a ceremony at Nokia Arena in front of 15,000 fans, Wednesday’s celebration included a trip to an amusement park and a Finnish professional skateboarder jumping over the coveted trophy.
The Panthers forward specifically said he wanted to include juniors in his day of celebration as much as he could.
"I myself was once a junior player, and the Cup motivated me,” Barkov told NHL.com. “Every morning, the first thought in my mind was the Cup. I believe that many juniors here today think about the Cup. I want to show them that everything is possible."