Finland cheered for one of it's greatest winners on Saturday.
Five-time Stanley Cup champion and Helsinki native Esa Tikkanen dropped the puck before the 2026 NHL Global Series game between the Seattle Kraken and Carolina Hurricanes.
Tikkanen, named the recipient of the NHL Alumni Association's Börje Salming Courage Award on Friday, did the honors at Veikkaus Arena as fellow Fins Kaapo Kakko of the Kraken and Sebastian Aho of the Hurricanes took the faceoff.
Tikkanen won four Stanley Cup titles with the Edmonton Oilers (1985, '87 '88 and '90) and won his fifth with the New York Rangers in 1994. He also spent time with the Vancouvcer Canucks, St. Louis Blues, Florida Panthers, Washington Capitals and New Jersey Devils.
A relentless two-way forward and expert on-ice pest over 14 NHL seasons, Tikkanen scored 630 points in 877 career regular season games and put up 132 points in 186 career playoff games.
Tikkanen and longtime teammate Jari Kurri are the only two Finnish-born players to have won five Cup titles.
