Tkachuk brothers aiming 'to win gold together' for U.S. in 2026 Olympics

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Keith Tkachuk and son Matthew Tkachuk stood on the balcony of the Elbo Room, the famed watering hole across the street from Fort Lauderdale Beach, and began showering beer out of the Stanley Cup down on the heads of screaming and adoring Florida Panthers fans down below.

What a way to start a Wednesday morning.

What a way to embrace the Panthers' second consecutive Stanley Cup.

The perfect Tkachuk way.

They had partied like this a year earlier, at this same place, in this same fashion, after the Panthers had defeated the Edmonton Oilers in Game 7 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final. Now, here they were again, on the sandy shores of the Atlantic Ocean, Matthew and his Panthers teammates zooming down the beach in a customized golf cart, Cup in tow, after clinching their second consecutive title with a 5-1 win against the Oilers in Game 6 of the Cup Final on Tuesday.

Only this time, there was even more to celebrate for the Tkachuks.

“It’s surreal,” Keith had said about 12 hours earlier, standing on the ice at Amerant Bank Arena with wife Chantal, son Brady and daughter Taryn, watching Matthew hoist the Cup again. “Not only seeing him win the Cup a second time but everything else that has happened to the family this week.

“I just don’t want this to end,” he told NHL.com. “I don’t. I really don’t.”

Keith was referring to the news Monday that his two boys were among the first six players named by the United States for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, joining forwards Jack Eichel (Vegas Golden Knights), Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs), and defensemen Charlie McAvoy (Boston Bruins) and Quinn Hughes (Vancouver Canucks).

When Keith first was informed both Matthew and Brady, the captain of the Ottawa Senators, had been selected, he admitted being overcome with emotion. He said he broke down. Which is what he still does whenever that moment is brought up.

“As a dad … I mean, our family, how hard the boys worked … to have the honor of both of them being among the first named to represent our country … I just, I mean … ”

He paused, searching for the right words. His eyes welled up. This was the image of a proud papa in its purest form.

Keep this in mind: During his 18 seasons from 1991-2010 with the Winnipeg Jets, Phoenix Coyotes, St. Louis Blues and Atlanta Thrashers, Keith was one of the most ornery hombres in the NHL, accruing 2,219 penalty minutes for his career.

He looked like anything but that while trying to explain what the Olympic inclusion of his two sons means.

“I can't explain it to you,” he said. “I lost it. I just did.”

He’s had reason to, given the fairy tale ride the family has been on in the past year.

A year ago, they’d watched Matthew win his first Cup, something Keith had never been able to do in his illustrious career.

In February, both Matthew and Brady fulfilled a lifelong dream by being teammates for the first time, in this case with the United States in the 4 Nations Face-Off.

On Tuesday, there was Matthew sipping out of the Cup again.

And now, they’ll have the chance of representing the United States again, this time at the Olympics in February.

“I guess the next thing on the agenda for our family,” Brady said, “is for Matthew and I to win gold together.”

They admittedly were each banged up at the 4 Nations, the event in which Brady had three goals in four games and Matthew had three points (two goals, one assist) in three. Canada ended up defeating the U.S. 3-2 in overtime of the title game, an outcome each is seeking retribution for.

For his part, Matthew revealed he sustained a torn adductor muscle and a sports hernia injury on the same side during that event and wasn’t even sure he’d be back for the playoffs.

Now, he has an entire summer to heal as a repeat champion and look forward to teaming up with his brother again, this time in Italy.

“It really felt like a dream come true when we found out we were two of the first six picked,” Brady said. “You always talk about winning the Stanley Cup but to have the opportunity to represent your country as part of the dream that is the Olympics, and to be part of the first step of that process, I’m really grateful and really honored.

“It was, the 4 Nations, it was the best hockey experience I ever had. It was amazing. It was special. Just to be able to represent your country. That was the best hockey, at the best level, I’ve ever been a part of. Just the way everyone was invested. I know it was a short tournament but just the bond you form as a group.

“It was just a taste of the pie of what’s to come, and I know a lot of the guys are champing at the bit to get back together.”

Count Matthew among those.

“It’s going to be amazing, to be able to play with Brady again, and on a world stage like that,” Matthew said. “It’s just something else for us to celebrate.”

Not that he and his family are lacking in reasons to do just that these days. Anything but.