Becoming Part Owner of Tappara a Dream Come True for Barkov

SUNRISE, Fla. --Tappara has always held a special place in Aleksander Barkov's heart.

The premier hockey club in his hometown of Tampere, Finland, the 24-year-old spent more than a decade within the organization's system. From his first steps onto the ice up until the Florida Panthers selected him second overall in the 2013 draft, the Tappara crest was all that he knew.

Growing up, Barkov also watched from the stands as his father, Alexander Barkov Sr., laced up his skates from 1994-2004 for Tappara's club in Liiga, Finland's premier professional league.

"It's been a huge part of my life," Barkov said of his history with Tappara. "I grew up with that organization. They helped me a lot get to the Panthers. I feel the same way about the Panthers. The Panthers are a huge part of me. I'm really lucky to be a part of those two organizations."

Moving forward, he's also now invested in the future of both organizations. On Thursday, Barkov made a "significant equity investment" into Tappara's parent company, Tamhockey Oy. As a result of the investment, he is now the club's third-largest shareholder.

"I feel like I've always been a little part of the team and the organization, but now especially with this thing happening I'm really proud and honored to become one of the owners," Barkov said. "Hopefully [I can] bring something new, some knowledge to the organization moving forward."

Tamhockey Oy CEO Mika Aro said he felt "proud but humble" after hearing the exciting news.

"Mr. Barkov's investment is financially significant to us," Aro said in the club's official release. "It secures the investments required for transition to our new home arena, Uros Live."

For Barkov, the investment also unearthed plenty of memories. After quickly moving up the club's junior ranks, he made his professional debut with Tappara on Oct. 1, 2011. At just 16 years old, he shined despite going head-to-head against professionals, many twice his age.

Over his two seasons in Liiga, he recorded 64 points (28 goals, 36 assists) in 85 games.

"I grew up with this team and went through the whole junior system and got to play two years in [Liiga]," Barkov said. "I will never forget those games and those years."

Looking ahead, Barkov said his primary focus remains bringing a Stanley Cup to South Florida - an opportunity he'll have when the NHL's 24-team postseason kicks off later on this summer.

When play does eventually resume, the 10th-seeded Panthers (35-26-8) will battle the seventh-seeded New York Islanders (35-23-10) in a best-of-five series during the Stanley Cup Qualifier.

"For me, I know the Stanley Cup Playoffs is everything," said Barkov, who ranked second on Florida in scoring during the regular season with 62 points (20 goals, 42 assists) in 66 games. "I would not leave my bed other than to just go to games and practices just for the chance to win the Stanley Cup. I live for this and the team lives for this. We want to win."

That being said, Barkov does plan to use his future downtime to gain a better knowledge of the business side of the sport in order to become a better owner. And when he returns to Finland in the offseason, he hopes to impart some knowledge on Tappara's young up-and-coming players.

"My full focus is on my own career, playing hockey for the Panthers and trying to win everything that's possible here," Barkov said.. "There's no question about it. I'm here full-time playing hockey. But, of course, moving forward I want to learn more things about the business side."

If his work ethic on the ice carries over into business, it's likely he'll be a top owner in no time.

"This is a big step for me," Barkov said. "Obviously, I'm new at this thing, so I'm going to learn every day, every time I talk to the guys in the organization. Maybe later after my career I'll get involved even more. We'll see what happens."