Evander Kane Further Slams Matthew Tkachuk, Feud Goes Beyond Alberta

Even though Evander Kane and Matthew Tkachuk are no longer in the same division or taking part in the bitter Battle of Alberta — and also now have a whole country separating them — their infamous feud lives on as the Edmonton Oilers forward again slammed the Florida Panthers star, who is headed to the U.S. following his trade from the Calgary Flames.

Over the offseason, he spoke with Oilers Nation about his rivalry with Matthew Tkachuk, and he didn’t hold back.

“He’s a guy who likes to talk and yip and yap and make gestures,” Kane told Oilers Nation about Tkachuk. “Nobody can say anything to me that I haven’t already heard, so it’s no skin off of my back. Sometimes when the shoe is on the other foot, people have a tough time handling it. I think that the mental aspect of maybe us competing against each other deterred him a little bit.”

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That wasn’t the only time this summer that Kane took a shot at Tkachuk. The former San Jose Sharks forward responded to Tkachuk’s first introductory press conference with the Panthers and responded to his hopes to bring a winning culture to the club with a simple “LOL” on Instagram.

Neither have ever truly taken kindly to each other. When with the Flames, Tkachuk once joked with Kane about needing money, referring to his declaration for bankruptcy ahead of the 2020-21 campaign.  The two also constantly chirped one another and got into it with punches and fights during face-offs.

Kane inked a four-year extension with the Oilers on the opening day of NHL free agency, while Tkachuk, an RFA, chose not to re-sign in Calgary and pulled off a sign-and-trade to the Panthers, where he signed a nine-year deal.

Edmonton and Florida meet twice this season, once in Sunrise on Nov. 12 and again in YEG on Nov. 28. It’ll be interesting to see how that Evander Kane-Matthew Tkachuk feud lives beyond Alberta.