Matthew Tkachuk revisits his 'most special moments' of 2024 Stanley Cup win on The Tonight Show

Matthew Tkachuk was a star for the Florida Panthers en route to their Stanley Cup title last year. He signed, and within two seasons, they'd been to the promised land twice and finally came away with the trophy last year.

Tkachuk went on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon on Monday night, and he revealed that it was the first time he'd seen his father, who was instrumental in getting both him and his brother into the sport, cry.

The NHL star added:

"And then my brother was crying there too, which I haven't seen him cry since playing many sticks of the basement and throwing them through the walls."

As for the actual win over the Edmonton Oilers, Tkachuk said he was happy to get the win for his father, who was one of the best American hockey players of all time in the Panthers star's eyes:

"He never, unfortunately, never got the chance to win the cup. And I don't think he would change a thing to see one of his boys lift that trophy. And one of the coolest moments I had was after that on the ice.

"Have my whole family out there with me, and I don't know I had the cup in my hands for some reason, this was after all the celebrating, and I got to hand it to him, and it was one of the most special moments in my life."

The Panthers redeemed themselves and staved off a historic comeback by Edmonton by winning Game 7 at home by a single goal.

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Matthew Tkachuk tells Tonight Show how meaningful 4 Nations was

Matthew Tkachuk suffered an undisclosed injury at the 4 Nations Face-Off that could potentially keep him out for a while. It hurts the Florida Panthers, but for Tkachuk, it was worth it.

Matthew Tkachuk in the 4 Nations Face-Off (Imagn)

He got to finally play with his brother Brady Tkachuk, and he said via Sportsnet:

"We've played in the All-Star game together, but that's fake. It was our first-ever opportunity. We grew up always competing against each other and dreaming about it, eventually one day... We always had the dreams of playing with each other, and it finally came true."

The United States, led by the Tkachuk brothers, fell short of glory, losing 3-2 to Canada in overtime on a Connor McDavid winner.