As the Carolina Hurricanes were celebrating their triumph in the 2026 Stanley Cup Final, Brady Tkachuk was all the way at the White House, attending UFC Freedom 250.
Tkachuk and the Hurricanes had vastly different endings to their seasons, as one ended up lifting the Stanley Cup, while the other had to constantly bat away rumors around his future with the Ottawa Senators. But as it turns out, the Hurricanes believe they have Brady Tkachuk to thank, in part, for the franchise finally going all the way this season.
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Why Carolina Hurricanes Have Love For Brady Tkachuk After 2026 Stanley Cup Win
The Carolina Hurricanes faced off against Brady Tkachuk's Ottawa Senators in the first round of the playoffs. And it didn't take long for the fire to ignite in Game 1.
Brady Tkachuk dropped the gloves with Carolina captain Jordan Staal in a move that ultimately backfired (heavily) as they swept the Senators in the first round. The Canes then swept the Philadelphia Flyers, eliminated the Montreal Canadiens in a gentleman's sweep, and dropped just two games in the Final against the Vegas Golden Knights to bring home the Stanley Cup.
A run like that, suffering just three defeats on the way to being crowned champions, is something the league hasn't seen since Wayne Gretzky's 1988 Edmonton Oilers. Apparently, the in-house belief in the Hurricanes franchise is that Tkachuk set things in motion.
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NHL insider Chris Johnston revealed an interesting little tidbit about Tkachuk's role in the Hurricanes' Stanley Cup win on the latest episode of The Chris Johnston Show
.
"One thing someone associated with the team said to me was that he felt that the Jordan Staal faceoff with Brady Tkachuk right at the start of the playoffs, where Jordan answered the call and fought Brady, it actually set a tone that echoed throughout the playoffs for the Hurricanes, just because there was always that idea that they could be bullied a little bit," Johnston reported.
"Jordan Staal's not a big fighter. He's a big, strong man, he's not afraid to answer a challenge, but he certainly doesn't go looking for that. The fact that he did that. Then ultimately they played Nic Deslauriers, maybe Game 4 in Ottawa, and Brady wanted no part of fighting him.
READ MORE: 'You Can't Forget What Marner Did': Matthew Tkachuk Makes Opinion Crystal Clear on 2026 Conn Smythe
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"They felt like their ability to hold their own in the physical department allowed them to play the way they needed to play to have the success they did. And lo and behold, they found a way through."
Interestingly, Jordan Staal's daughter
also spared a thought for Tkachuk. After the Game 6 win, Staal's daughter asked her father, "Why did you punch that guy?" drawing attention back to the very start of Carolina's stunning run in the playoffs.
