Brotherly love will always be important for siblings. In the NHL, there's a pair of brothers that have become so popular in the NHL with Brady Tkachuk and Matthew Tkachuk.
The Tkachuk brothers became more popular when both of them each got into a fight against Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off this past February in Montreal.
As Brady and his Ottawa Senators are eliminated from the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, they are watching the rest of the playoffs from home. However, Brady can't keep watching his brother have success from home.
Matthew is in ECF with Panthers again; Panthers won Game 1 of 2025 ECF
The unfortunate thing for Brady is he's yet to win the big one in his NHL career, that being a Stanley Cup and having playoff success. The same can't be said for his brother.
Matthew is in the Eastern Conference Finals for the third consecutive season with the Florida Panthers. The Panthers have made the Eastern Conference Finals every year since trading for Matthew after the 2021-22 season.
Last season, Matthew won the Stanley Cup for the first time in his career. Brady was in the building when Matthew won the Cup, but at some point Brady can't be watching his brother have the better success than him.
Last night, the Panthers won Game 1 of the 2025 Eastern Conference Finals 5-2 against the Carolina Hurricanes to take a 1-0 series lead. The Panthers are now three wins away from going back to the Stanley Cup Finals for the third consecutive year. If the Panthers do win the series, Brady would have to watch his brother once again in the Stanley Cup Finals.
Watching your brother have huge playoff success while not winning one playoff series could sting for some. However, it's where Brady is at right now.
But, 2025 was a step in the right direction to chase the big one for Brady. The Senators made the playoffs for the first time since 2017. With 2025 being the year to help Brady get his first taste of playoff hockey, it can only help motivate him to lead the Senators in 2026.