SUNRISE, Fla. – He put the “shooting” in shooting star.
Filling up the back of the net for the Florida Panthers, Brady Tkachuk was recognized as the NHL’s First Star of the Week for the week ending Oct. 18, the NHL announced on Monday.
In four games, he was tied for first in the NHL with 10 points (6G, 4A).
“When we set the pace, other teams have a tough time keeping up with our size, our skill and our physicality,” Tkachuk said of spearheading Florida's recent scoring outburst. “It’s just a combination of that. If we can just keep continuing to get better, which I feel every game we are, the sky’s the limit for our group.”
The NHL's other stars of the week are Edmonton's Connor McDavid (Second Star) and Minnesota's Kirill Kaprizov (Third Star).
After dishing out an assist in a 5-3 loss at Buffalo on Oct. 12, Tkachuk kicked off what would end up being an historic run with four points (3G, 1A) in a 7-3 win at Columbus on Oct. 13.
Just two days later, the 27-year-old scored all three of Florida’s goals in a 3-2 overtime win against the Vancouver Canucks on Oct. 15, becoming only the third player in NHL history to record natural hat tricks in consecutive games and the first since 1986.
Overall, no player had notched back-to-back hat tricks in the NHL since 2024.
“Honestly, still can’t believe it happened,” Tkachuk said of his achievement. “I’ve never done that in my life. It was great, but I’m just happier with the outcome for the team. I feel like we’re clicking on a lot of cylinders right now and building on that."
Acquired by the Panthers in a blockbuster trade with the Ottawa Senators in June, Tkachuk currently ranks tied for first on the team in both goals (6) and points (10) through nine contests.
He also has the second-most hits (30).
Sitting at 5-2-2 and on a three-game winning streak, the Panthers will open up a four-game road trip with a battle against the Senators at Canadian Tire Centre on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. ET.
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