Matthew Tkachuk, the hockey junkie (Athletic)

[tvp2003]

Scott Cruickshank with a spectacular article on Chucky, his obsession with hockey, and how he's carried it with him into the NHL:

Without a doubt, Tkachuk’s fascination is legitimate. You couldn’t fake that many hours of hockey-watching, no matter how much you want to please the old man. But one question — did all the screen time actually make him better?

Keith thinks so.

“Honestly, doing that helped him understand,” he said. “I used to say all the time to Matthew and his brother, ‘Whatever you do, I want you to watch only one player — Pavel Datsyuk.’ Not only because he was highly skilled, but the way he played.”

https://theathletic.com/765929/2019/...inues-to-grow/

[Bunk]

Originally Posted by tvp2003

Scott Cruickshank with a spectacular article on Chucky, his obsession with hockey, and how he's carried it with him into the NHL:



https://theathletic.com/765929/2019/...inues-to-grow/

It was interesting. Though, the entire article could have been one sentence:

"Matthew grew up with hockey, was always obsessed and continues to be obsessed as evidenced by him watching every game he can".

I like how he lives and breathes the stuff - he'll always be more inclined to learn and improve than the average player.

[Otto-matic]

I still think Jagr did wonders to Chucky for his short time here. Totally different player after learning from him.

[Tron_fdc]

I wonder how much time he spends on CP.....it's one of the best resources out there if you cut through all the mud.

[automaton 3]

Jagr worked his magic with Johnny too. IIRC told him he could win the scoring race every year with his talent, but had to keep the right mindset and work at it.

[Beninho]

It’s not a surprise that his hockey IQ is on a different level. There’s a reason this team was ready to jump up in the draft for him. A special player with a special love for the game

[bdubbs]

What a beauty.

[Tyler]

Chucky likes hockey

[TheSutterDynasty]

Originally Posted by Tron_fdc

I wonder how much time he spends on CP.....it's one of the best resources out there if you cut through all the mud.

Like how everyone can magically tell how well a coach or goalie coach is performing based exclusively on a team winning without knowing anything else about systems, practices, skills, etc?

Major sports in North America definitely seem to be getting to the point where the only athletes who make it to that high of a level are those who are as obsessed as Tkachuk at an early age.

[CliffFletcher]

Soon after the Flames drafted the kid sixth overall in 2016 there came a crash course in the team’s history — at his dad’s insistence.

“I honestly knew not much, if anything, about Calgary and he (emphasized that I should) know who played here before, who was on the Stanley Cup team,” he said. “He wanted me to be very interested in the Battle of Alberta. Who were the big rivalry teams? Who was on them back in the day? He thinks it’s important for you to know the former players. He knows from experience that former players come to games, they come to the rink a lot. It’s important to pay your respects.”

Keith seems pretty cool.

[iloveicedhockey]

Seems to be a lot of the best hockey stories come from Calgary, which is perfect.

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by Otto-matic

I still think Jagr did wonders to Chucky for his short time here. Totally different player after learning from him.

I said then and will always believe that signing Jagr was one of Treliving's best moves regardless of how many games he played. Having him around everyday to teach our plethora of young players was more valuable than any goal or points he could have gotten

[Calgary4LIfe]

Jagr was great while he was in Calgary. Bennett - Jankowski - Jagr was without question a dominant line, especially along the boards, and gave Calgary a completely different look to match-up against. It is just a shame he got injured. I wish Treliving would have signed him earlier so that he could have eased into the season like he should have, but uncertainty with some of the contracts made that impossible. Seeing Jagr in a Flaming C was one of the highlights of my Calgary Flames' fandom, one that started as soon as the Flames landed in Calgary from Atlanta.


As for Tkachuk, I am guessing that the Flames had him ranked #3, and were absolutely right to have done so. Kid is still a sponge, and even responds the right way the few times he has been disciplined for his... over-exuberance. Name one facet of his game that doesn't improve every season? He gets better at everything, every single season. Not a single area of his game is stagnant to me. He even looks a bit quicker out there.

[AC]

I always like hearing about players watching highlights on YouTube.

Over the years I've heard from a few players or their family members about my videos, but I bet someone as obsessed as Tkachuk would be a prime candidate to sit down and watch all 99 minutes of Chucky highlights I've put out so far.