‘So gifted’: Tkachuk dishing assists at an historic rate for Panthers

WINNIPEG – Matthew Tkachuk’s generosity is unmatched.

Dishing the biscuit with skill and precision, the superstar winger recorded four assists while helping lead the Florida Panthers to a 5-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets at Canada Life Centre on Tuesday.

Moving into a tie for second in the NHL with 16 assists this season, Tkachuk has become just the third player in Panthers history to register at least 16 helpers in a single month.

“His hands are just world class, and they always have been,” head coach Paul Maurice said.

Only two weeks removed from a five-assist performance in a 7-3 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Oct. 13, Tkachuk is the second Panther to post multiple games with at least four assists in a single season – and there’s still 71 games left to add another.

Of his 16 assists this season, eight have been primary.

Locking in the 5-1 win over the Jets, Tkachuk's pinpoint pass to set up his brother, Brady, for a goal is worth multiple viewings.

“He’s the guy maybe the most that benefited most from a summer off,” Maurice said. “It was the first summer in four years [where he wasn’t injured]. I mean, he broke his collarbone after the first year, so he just has never been able to. He's just rehabbed all summer. He's never been able to make gains, so now he had a full summer of training.”

Reaching 200 career assists as a Panther faster than anyone in the history of the franchise, Tkachuk, who's already in his fifth season with Florida, has eclipsed that mark in just 255 games, crushing the previous record of 369 games set by Keith Yandle.

Since joining the Panthers in 2022-23, Tkachuk’s 203 assists are also 40 more than the next-highest skater on the team’s leaderboard, which is captain Aleksander Barkov with 163.

“He's so gifted with what he does,” Maurice said.