Barkov transforms hometown into ‘Barkov City’ during Stanley Cup celebration

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."

Before traveling to the amusement park, Barkov brought in Finnish professional skateboarder Marius Syvänen, who – as far as records show – is now the first person to jump over the 35.25-inch-tall trophy on a skateboard.

To cap off the day, Barkov took Lord Stanley to Nokia Arena, where fans filled the venue to celebrate the historic championship.

During the celebration, Barkov was joined by some special guests, some of whom called in virtually to congratulate the forward. NHL Hall of Famers Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Chris Chelios all sent in congratulatory messages that played during the ceremony.

But the spectacle event didn’t keep Barkov distracted for very long, as soon after the ceremony he was already thinking about what it will take for the team to get back to the pinnacle this upcoming season.

"We won the Cup, the greatest prize, but you want to feel the same feelings again. That leaves you hungry,” Barkov said. "Winning the Cup helps us this coming season, but winning two in a row will no way be easy.

“It wasn't easy to win this one, and the next win will not be easy,” he added. “Everyone has to give it all, everyone has to play his best game, and of course you need a little bit of luck. That's what it takes to win the Cup."

NHL.com/fi independent correspondent Varpu Sihvonen contributed to this report