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The NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs got off to a roaring start on Saturday.
Team USA folk hero Brady Tkachuk dropped the gloves with the Carolina Hurricanes’ Jordan Staal in a battle of captains on the ice as soon as the puck dropped to begin the quest for the Stanley Cup.
Taking the ice to start the game, Tkachuk appeared to ask Staal if he was interested in participating.
Apparently it was a yes.
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Jordan Staal of the Carolina Hurricanes and Brady Tkachuk of the Ottawa Senators battle during the first period in Game 1 of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina on April 18, 2026. (Josh Lavallée/NHLI/Getty Images)
Tkachuk threw a few right hands, but Staal delivered a huge blow that connected and knocked Tkachuk to the ice.
This isn’t the first time Tkachuk has dropped the gloves on the first faceoff this season. He did it twice before against New York Islanders captain Anders Lee, including last week.
Left wing Brady Tkachuk of the Ottawa Senators and center Jordan Staal of the Carolina Hurricanes fight after the opening faceoff during Game 1 of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina on April 18, 2026. (Katherine Gawlik/Icon Sportswire)
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Tkachuk stole the hearts of American hockey fans last year when, playing for Team USA at the 4 Nations, he got into a fight with Team Canada’s Sam Bennett just three seconds after his brother, Matthew, fought as the puck fell.
Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk are teammates on the back-to-back defending champion Florida Panthers, who failed to make the playoffs this year.
The Tkachuks won Olympic gold in February, gaining their long-awaited revenge on Canada, who dominated the rivalry in men’s ice hockey.
It was the United States’ first gold medal in men’s ice hockey since 1980, and the first time the United States had beaten Canada in the knockout stage since winning gold against Canada in 1960.
Brady Tkachuk of the United States celebrates his gold medal during the men’s gold medal game against Canada at the Milan Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena during the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, February 22, 2026. (Vitalii Kliuiev/Getty Images)
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Tkachuk’s Ottawa Senators earned a wild card spot for the playoffs, while Carolina’s 113 points this season were the second-highest in the NHL and the highest in the Eastern Conference.
