When Patrick Kane calls it a career, he’ll have left a lasting legacy on the NHL, particularly with US-born players.
Matthew and Brady Tkachuk were 10 and eight years old, respectively, when Kane netted 21 goals and 72 points as a 19-year-old rookie for Chicago.
“I definitely tried some of the things that he did,” says Matthew, the Florida forward. “My brother and I would always watch his shootout moves, coming in slow, and just some of the hand stuff he was able to do making plays. I’m a way different player, but some of the skill stuff — the stick-handling, the saucer passes — I’ve definitely learned from him.”
“He came into the league and had the slick hands and the swagger,” adds Brady, Ottawa’s captain. “He definitely was a role model to a lot of US kids coming up.”
But beyond the skill, is there anything else — any part of that swagger — that young and impressionable American-born players of this generation, like the Tkachuks and Arizona’s Clayton Keller, picked up from Kane?
Now in their mid-20s, the Tkachuks and Keller are three of the prominent NHL players who chew incessantly on their mouth guards, like the Blackhawks’ star did earlier in his career. Some who knew them growing up insist that, even if it was subconsciously, they picked up the habit from their favorite hockey player.
Patrick Kane (Bill Smith / NHLI via Getty Images)
“It’s funny to watch those guys doing it now,” Kane says. “(Matthew) Tkachuk, especially, like high-profile players that have had success in the league, and they’re chewing on their mouthpiece, and you kind of wonder what the backstory is there.”
In search of that backstory, The Athletic reached out to the Tkachuks and Keller to find out if they, in fact, copied Kane. What we learned is that they were more than willing to rat out each other, but when it came to whether he’s the reason they chewed on their mouth guards, they were a lot more, well, guarded.
The Tkachuk brothers met Kane in one of his first seasons with Chicago through their father, Keith, who was playing with the Blues. At the time, Kane was the boys’ favorite player.
“Whenever we got to the age where we started watching more, even though they were the rivals at the time, we always wanted to go to those games and watch him,” Matthew says. “I think my dad knew we were rooting for them, so I don’t think he really cared.”
In fact, it was Keith who set up a photo of the three.
“I remember that picture,” Brady recalls. “My dad was like, ‘Hey I’m going to have you guys meet Patrick Kane.’ It was definitely really exciting for Matthew and I.”
From left to right, Brady Tkachuk, Patrick Kane and Matthew Tkachuk early in Kane’s career (Photo: Tkachuk family)
They’d watch Kane’s every move and noticed that he was always gnawing on his mouth guard, which was something he did going back to his days with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League in 2006-07.
“I started it in London because that was when I first started wearing the visor, and I started having to wear a mouth piece,” Kane says. “Even as a kid, we always had to use them just for rules and stuff, (but) I never liked wearing it. I would just keep it like in my cage.
“When we had to start wearing it, I just for some reason started chewing on it. It seemed to be a lot easier for me than like actually wearing it in my mouth, (which) kind of defeated the purpose of having one in the first place.”
Kane continued chewing on it when he got to the NHL, and it looked “cool.”
“He had it half in, half out, almost like a ‘couldn’t care less’ level, kind of that swagger,” Brady says. “He had that flow on him, too, and kids, for sure, modeled themselves after that.”
About a decade later, Matthew broke into the league with Calgary, where fans noticed that he, too, was usually twisting and turning his mouth guard with his teeth.
Care to explain?
“I’m not sure where that started or why,” Matthew says. “Maybe just like a little stress-reliever. I don’t know why I do it.”
Um, could it possibly be because of Kane?
“I can promise I didn’t copy him with that,” Matthew responds. “I’m sure people can make the connection because of him, but I don’t think that’s necessarily the case. I wouldn’t be surprised if some guys, he was their idol and maybe do it because of him. Maybe with some people, but not with me.”
Hand on the Bible?
How about we ask Brady?
“Oh, for sure,” he replied. “Matthew, he was a Kane fan growing up, so I definitely think part of it is because of him.”
Busted!
A couple of years later, Brady was drafted by Ottawa, and it wasn’t long before everyone saw that he was also a chewer.
Well, Brady?
“For me, it was a little bit of (Kane), but sometimes the mouth guard is so annoying that you don’t even realize that it’s hanging out of your mouth,” he says in sort of a half-acknowledgement.
It seemed like a guarantee that Matthew would sell out his brother in this situation, but in typical sibling-rivalry fashion, he took it a step further.
“I always gave Brady s— when we were younger because he was copying all the stuff that I would do,” Matthew says. “So maybe he does it because of me. Who knows?”
There was only one thing the Tkachuks would agree on, which was that Keller, a longtime friend and now NHL rival, definitely copied Kane.
As part of the 2016 NHL draft class that saw five St. Louisans selected in the first round, Keller was 9 years old when Kane came into the league, and he quickly became his favorite player, too.
“I loved everything about his game — his confidence, his ability to try things that nobody else tried — and it just drew me toward him,” Keller says.
Anything else? Any memory of his mouth guard?
“Yeah, I remember Chicago was playing Detroit, and I think it was Johan Franzen who grabbed it out of (Kane’s) mouth,” Keller says. “He ripped it right out. That was pretty funny.”
But not of Kane chewing it, kind of like you do now?
“Uh, I don’t know,” Keller says. “I feel like, if anything, you’d try to emulate his game more than noticing that. I feel like most guys don’t like having the mouth guard in. You were always told to wear one growing up, but you never actually wore it. You just chewed on it.”
So, what’s the verdict, boys?
“I’m sure that’s why ‘Kells’ does it,” Matthew responds. “I’m sure he did it to copy Kaner.”
That’s relayed to Keller, and he’s asked if he has anything to say in defense of himself.
“Nothing,” Keller says sheepishly.
One interesting part about all of this is that Kane doesn’t even chew his mouth guard anymore. In fact, he doesn’t even wear one. He hasn’t since the NHL lockout season in 2012-13.
“I went over to Switzerland and forgot my mouth piece, so I just stopped wearing it,” Kane says. “It felt like, not a distraction, but you’re just chewing on it while you’re playing, you know, and it’s just kind of weird. I found that I liked it better without wearing one.”
Keller admits he noticed.
“Yeah, I watch all their games if I can, so I guess I saw him not wearing it,” he says.
But it seems neither Keller, nor the Tkachuks, are ever going to come clean on why they still chew theirs.
“I haven’t talked to them about it,” Kane says. “You know, you hear certain things, like Keller really liked me as a player or whatever. You hear other things, too, but it’s just funny because now they’ve kind of taken on that trend and I’m not really doing that anymore.”
(Top photo of Matthew Tkachuk: Gerry Thomas / NHLI via Getty Images)
.