Tkachuk sustained a lower-body injury during the 4 Nations Face-Off in February and missed the remainder of the regular season.
The 27-year-old made up for lost time, scoring twice and adding an assist as the Panthers kicked off the opening round with a 6-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Despite some “ups and downs,” Tkachuk has played a pivotal role and is tied with Sam Bennett for the team lead in scoring during the playoffs with 22 points (seven goals, 16 assists) in 22 games.
With the Panthers one win away from capturing a second consecutive Stanley Cup, Tkachuk said he’s feeling the best he’s felt ahead of Game 6 against the Edmonton Oilers.
“The first round was definitely the worst I felt, by far, and just knowing that was going to be — other than this round — that was our toughest round, playing Tampa, so I knew that even at nowhere close to what I expected to have of myself I knew I need to help out as best I can if we were going to get by them,” Tkachuk told reporters Monday. “I was proud of myself and happy for playing that round.”
He added: “Personally, I’m very happy with where the health is and everything and just very lucky that I’m able to be playing. … I thought there was maybe a 50 per cent chance I wouldn’t be playing as close to about a week or five days before playoffs. I’m very lucky and fortunate that I’ve got great trainers and doctors and they somehow got me healthy enough to play.”
These playoffs haven’t been the first time Tkachuk has played through pain. Panthers head coach Paul Maurice reflected on a game in the Stanley Cup Final two years ago against the Vegas Golden Knights when Tkachuk played with a broken collarbone.
“I think he had our three best chances to score that night against Vegas, so he could adapt his game very well and we knew he wasn’t at 100 per cent or close to it actually,” Maurice said. “I think the last three games he’s played have been the best of the playoffs by far, so he’s back.”
Maurice was cautious with how he deployed Tkachuk as the playoffs progressed.
“There’s still the mental part about how far do you want to stress that — taking hits, giving hits and things like that — and then as of this series, he’s back to full health,” Maurice said. “When that happens, you’ve seen that line then become a very good line on both sides of the puck. They were producing great numbers at the start, but loose isn’t the right word, but they weren’t able to defend as well as they can now.”
Tkachuk was also one of the first six players named Monday to the United States’ men’s hockey roster for next year’s Winter Olympics in Italy.
Watch Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final live Tuesday on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ starting at 8 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. MT.
