Tkachuk's game has been building since his return from surgery. If he's really 100 percent, the Canes know better than anyone what it means.

Following the Florida Panthers' 5-2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final, head coach Paul Maurice changed his stance on his postgame statement to Matthew Tkachuk,

Matthew Tkachuk was honest with his Panthers squad about playing the Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Matthew Tkachuk said his body feels “great” after Florida beat Toronto in the conference semifinals. He returned from an injury in time for the playoffs, but has not scored in nine

Following the Game 7 triumph over the Toronto Maple Leafs, Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk delivered a surprising victory lap confession about the drama surrounding the organization in Canada.

Matthew Tkachuk and the Florida Panthers cruised past the Toronto Maple Leafs with a dominant 6–1 win in Game 7 of their second-round Stanley Cup Playoffs series on Sunday night. After falling behind 2–0 early in the series, Florida stormed back with three straight wins before the Leafs forced a decisive Game 7.

Speaking with the boys from Spittin Chiclets podcast, Tkachuk seemed to know exactly who was to blame for the Maple Leafs’ last playoff failure, pointing the finger at fans and media in Toronto: “If their team was not in Toronto dealing with all the crazy circus stuff outside of it, they’d be an unbelievable team.”

He’s being physical. He’s a bench presence. He’s a little thorn in the other team’s side. So we appreciate everything he does.’

The Florida Panthers are set to take on the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final starting on Tuesday night at PNC Arena.