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Matthew Tkachuk responds to having 'same hatred' for Edmonton Oilers as during his Calgary Flames days
Matthew Tkachuk used to be no fan of the Edmonton Oilers. The forward spoke on his old disdain for the franchise ahead of their matchup in this year's Stanley Cup Finals. This began before he was on his current team, as he was involved in many dust-ups over the years. Whether or not that will continue on the biggest stage for the sport remains to be seen.
He was asked if he has the "same hatred" now as he used to for the Oilers, who were rivals with his old team: the Calgary Flames. Tkachuk said:
"I don't know, I wouldn't say that. Any time you're playing any opponent in the Stanley Cup Finals, you don't have to have a team rivalry with them. Right when the puck drops, it's very intense like you've had that rivalry for years."
He also added that his team is very experienced and that there's so much on the line that it doesn't matter who is on the other side of the ice. Be it a hated team or not, they're in the way of a championship.
Matthew Tkachuk opens up on 2023-24 Panthers team
The 2023-2024 Florida Panthers are within four wins of a Stanley Cup title. They have a chance to do something special, and Matthew Tkachuk believes this is a team that can do just that.
He said:
“A very committed and very relaxed team. Last year, we were riding that high & rode it all the way to the final… Guys are coming in working as hard as they can every day. Expecting that from the guy next to them, everybody's bought in.”
The forward is one of the best players and a leader on the team, and he believes the locker room is filled with players and personalities who are giving it everything to reach their ultimate goal.
They do have a challenging opponent in their way, one that Tkachuk has a particular disdain for. Nevertheless, they are poised for an epic showdown that will determine who takes home the trophy. Tkachuk believes it can be his guys this time.
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