On deadline day in 2025, the Florida Panthers traded for Brad Marchand. Now, his Panthers teammate Matthew Tkachuk admits he “confirmed” the trade to his teammates before it had actually been approved. The problem? Tkachuk was joking and didn’t realize what was about to happen.
The Panthers pulled off one of the most astonishing trades in the modern NHL last year when they acquired their Atlantic Division rival’s captain — the Boston Bruins’ Brad Marchand.
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Brad Marchand trade to Panthers
Marchand quickly became a key piece for the Panthers, who went on to win their second Stanley Cup in a row. With 20 points in 23 playoff games, he played an important role in the championship run. He fit right into the physical, aggressive style of play that has become the Panthers’ trademark.
But the trade wasn’t approved until the very last minute. Now, Matthew Tkachuk has revealed what he accidentally did in the Panthers’ group chat before the deal was officially announced.
Matthew Tkachuk pranked his teammates
Speaking on the Wingmen podcast, which Matthew hosts with his brother Brady Tkachuk, he explained what happened on deadline day in 2025.
“Last year, the deadline’s approaching. Everything is quiet — nothing coming on Twitter. Then all of a sudden I get a little alert that says, ‘Brad Marchand potentially traded from the Bruins.’ And then the next alert is ‘Hearing Florida Panthers.’ And I’m like, ‘Holy sh*t, there’s no way.’ We’re not trading with the Bruins — they’re our rival. We beat them the last two years. There’s no way we’re going to take their captain from them. Sure enough, our group chat starts flying around. Everyone’s like, ‘Did we just trade for Marchand? Has anybody heard?’” Tkachuk said on the podcast.
Since nobody could confirm the trade, Tkachuk decided to prank his teammates.
“It was past the deadline, so they must have put it in, but it hadn’t been approved yet. They were like, ‘Did we trade for Marchand?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, you guys didn’t hear?’ Completely made it up, put the phone away and went for my afternoon nap. I just didn’t give a f*ck. Then I wake up a few hours later and it’s just nonsense on my phone,” Matthew Tkachuk said.
Luckily for Tkachuk — and the Panthers — the trade actually went through.
You can watch the hilarious story below.
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