Panthers pack agitator one-two punch in Tkachuk and Marchand

When Connor McDavid took his seat at a table on Media Day Tuesday, the Edmonton Oilers captain looked over his left shoulder and saw this giant photo of Matthew Tkachuk, grinning from ear to ear with the Stanley Cup over his head.

Did the agitating Florida Panthers winger have anything to do with that?

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No, he’s not that conniving. This was the NHL’s seating chart.

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“Doesn’t matter where you sit. There’s lots of pictures around here,” said Tkachuk, not into any gloats.

Indeed, the NHL had hung several other celebration photos on the wall. Sidney Crosby with hockey’s Holy Grail, a tooth-gapped Alex Ovechkin, also Wayne Gretzky when he was just a baby as Oilers captain, but there was Tkachuk’s mug behind 97, as if to say, “Hey, Connor here’s what’s ours.”

“He’s the best player in the world and I’ve said it bunch since we figured we were playing them,” said Tkachuk about McDavid. “We’re the two best teams in the league and I don’t think there’s any debate. We’re both here two years in a row. It’s the hardest trophy in sports to win and credit to both of us for getting back. I mean some teams are two months into their summer training.”

“I’m sure he and the rest of their team is as motivated as we were last year. We’re three years into this and they’re two They’re been knocking on the door for a while with the conference finals. They’ve been past the first round so many times,” said Tkachuk.

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But how is this time around for the Panthers after winning last June 24 in south Florida in Game 7 after starting their three trips in a row with a five-game finals loss to Vegas in 2023.

“Makes you greedier. It was such an incredible, life-changing moment last year. You want to do it again,” said Tkachuk, dismissing any thought that the Panthers might be satisfied with one group photo around the trophy and maybe not as hungry.

“It’s the Stanley Cup, the most motivating thing in hockey,” said Tkachuk, as if it was the dumbest question.

Same feeling for Panthers’ coach Paul Maurice, who got his first Cup last June.

“I couldn’t articulate very well the experience of it last year or the unknown prior, and then it happens and you have this incredible experience with a group of guys you care so much about. Then you’re back and you want to do it again because it’s so wonderful,” said Maurice.

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Tkachuk has played the role of the villain for years and it’s a role he likes.

“I believe I’ve played the most playoff games in this building without playing for the Oilers. With the bubble and everything else,” said the former Calgary Flames forward. “Regular-season and playoff games? Seems like I’m here a ton.”

Tkachuk now has company as a guy in a black hat, though, with Brad Marchand on his side after all those bruising years in Boston, with the former Bruins captain relishing another run at a Cup at 37 after his trade-deadline move. And the Panthers play the same bully style as the Bruins did for years, so it’s like riding a bike for Marchand.

“What Florida’s done is to build a team tough to compete against. That’s the style of game you want to be part of. The high-end skill and finesse gets you here, but it takes a whole different level to take you far,” said the unrestricted free-agent

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Marchand wasn’t going to have that with the Bruins, who couldn’t come to agreement on a new contract and so moved him along in a business deal.

“It was stressful and I don’t think I dealt with some of the situations great. I let it frustrate me and obviously the team didn’t have the success we expected. We had a hard time getting it back on track and when we did, it fell apart,” he said.

“I’m very grateful. You never know when you’re going to get another opportunity like this. I was a little worried about this and how I’d gel. I was really nervous. But this a great room and the guys made me so comfortable,” said Marchand, whose dad once played Junior with Oilers forward Evander Kane’s pop.

Now, Marchand’s on a team with Tkachuk, playing on the Panthers effective third line with Anton Lundell and Eetu Luostarinen, and the two agitators are frick and frack as greasy guys go.

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“He’s (the same guy off the ice as he is on,” said Marchand, talking about his teammate. “He is who he is. He’s always poking at guys, stirring the pot. He’s elite at antagonizing and backing it up. That’s one of the most frustrating parts. He’s all over you, then he’ll score a goal or make a big play. Obviously his dad was a great player and he taught his boys how to play the right way. In the room you see how he interacts with the players, the trainers, he just gets it.”

And Tkachuk’s take on Marchand?

“He’s the perfect Panther, he’s built for our team on the ice and with his personality off the ice. It’s been such a great fit. He was so hard to play against and we’ve played them a bunch,” said Tkachuk.

Tkachuk and Marchand certainly had their run-ins in the playoffs as fierce competitors and now we’ve got Tkachuk and his childhood friend Trent Frederic, the Oilers winger and former Bruins’ forward who had a tiff with Tkachuk to kick off the 2024-25 regular season. Frederic, who grew up in St. Louis with both Matthew and Brady Tkachuk, says Matthew asked for a fight back in October, but when Frederic dropped his gloves, Matthew wasn’t into it.

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“I think he said, ‘Let’s go,’ ’’ said Frederic back in October.

“I guess he wasn’t talking about fighting.”

Maybe no scrapping, but Tkachuk likes the way Frederic plays.

“He =played mainly with my brother and the families are super tight. To see him come to this team, I knew he’d have success with his style. He’s played really well for them in playoffs, along with their other acquisitions. It’s a bigger team, more physical,” said Tkachuk.

But the goalies haven’t changed. Sergei Bobvrovsky battling Stu Skinner, and Bobrovsky remembers his embrace with Skinner in the handshake line.

“I’ve been losing my whole career and I know how it feels. I wanted to support him. He fought hard and it was a good challenge for us to score and win,” said Goalie Bob.

“It was an incredible comeback by them and he was a big reason why they tied up the series. Now, it’s zero-zero again. He’s a great goalie. I’m looking forward to competing against him,” said Bobrovsky.

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