Family is your biggest cheerleader, it is often said. However, in the case of the Panthers’ star, Matthew Tkachuk, things are quite complicated, albeit in a good way. While he is representing the Florida Panthers, his brother, Brady, is leading the Ottawa Senators. As a result, there are mixed fan bases in their family, with some supporting the Panthers while others back the Senators. Now that both the Panthers and the Senators have made it to the playoffs, the elder Tkachuk brother, Matthew, opened up about facing Brady on the ice.

Interestingly, the Panthers and the Senators would only face each other in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. With Matthew nearing a comeback, there is a possibility that the two brothers could go head-to-head in the playoffs. Ahead of that scenario, the Panthers’ star made his feelings clear about facing his brother, Brady Tkachuk.

Matthew Tkachuk, during the Up & Adams Show with Kay Adams, revealed, “Our whole family, um, to see, like, their boys and, you know, brother and whatever, just like, go out there and compete for their dream But I will say it was way more fun playing with him than it is against him. So I’m not necessarily looking forward to going up against him and playing. He’s a beast. He will be probably the toughest guy in the league to play against in a playoff series.”

Earlier this year, the two brothers went up against each other before teaming up for the Four Nations Tournament. On that occasion, it was Matthew’s Panthers who prevailed, with both brothers scoring goals. The Panthers went on to defeat the Senators 5-1 in that match, with Matthew revealing, “It’s going to be way more fun to be on the same side as opposed to playing against him.”

However, both Brady and Matthew are battling injuries. Ahead of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, NHL insiders Kyle Bukauskas and Elliotte Friedman gave updates about their return to the ice.

Will Brady and Matthew Tkachuk make a comeback this season?

Recently, on the new episode of Sportsnet’s podcast, Kyle Bukauskas and Elliotte Friedman were discussing the Stanley Cup Playoffs and the players gearing up for a return. During that conversation, they shed light on the Tkachuk brothers’ injuries and the possibilities of a comeback in the upcoming games. While they were hopeful about Matthew’s return, they weren’t confident about Brady’s return this season.

Talking about the younger Tkachuk brother, they said, “We lived it at Four Nations; remember, as that tournament went on, we were supposed to talk to a player or two leading up to the final and one of the teams were like, ‘Erm, not so sure about it.’ Just because they weren’t entirely sure about the player’s availability for the game, that was not the case here with Brady, so who knows, maybe we don’t see him the rest of the regular season for Ottawa.”

With the Stanley Cup Playoffs beginning in a few days, the two brothers face a race against time to get back to full fitness. Will we see another battle between the Tkachuk brothers this season? Let your views be known in the comments below.