Matthew Tkachuk emerged as the standout sensation of the 2023-24 NHL season. After leading the Florida Panthers to the Stanley Cup Finals, his success followed a tumultuous summer. <h2>Tkachuk's Trade</h2> <div align='center' style='padding-top:20px;padding-bottom:20px;'><img src='https://i.marqueur.com/habsetlnh/i/photo/308456.webp' width='100%' border='0' alt='image' loading='lazy' defer /></div> The departure of Johnny Gaudreau from Calgary in free agency was just the beginning. Soon after, Tkachuk, who was selected by the Flames as the No. 6 pick in 2017, expressed his desire to be moved. In an unprecedented move, Calgary granted him the autonomy to seek out a trade partner, making his situation similar to that of an unrestricted free agent. Florida then completed the trade secured his talents. <q>I felt very lucky because I basically was a UFA.</q> <h2>The Final Contenders</h2> Though Tkachuk found his home in Florida, he shared that there were two other franchises vying for his signature. <q>With their permission, I was allowed to basically for one week talk to, you know, other teams and figure it out, obviously with their permission and everything. The three final teams were Florida, Carolina, and St. Louis.</q> The allure of joining St. Louis, where his father became an NHL legend, must have been tempting. Nonetheless, Tkachuk's choice to align with Florida proved astute. Fans are eager to see if he can lead the Panthers to another Stanley Cup Finals appearance. <div align='center'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/CamandStrick/status/1699881872614932947'> </a></blockquote></div> As seen on Daily Hockey Dose - <a href='https://www.dailyhockeydose.com/nhl-team/florida-panthers/Matthew-Tkachuk-Reveals-Which-Two-Teams-He-almost-landed-on-last-summer' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>Tkachuk Reveals Which Two Teams He almost landed on last summer</a>