St. Louis locked up the Stanley Cup on Monday

The St. Louis Blues have come up short since 2019, but the Stanley Cup has been back in the city for each of the last two summers. Of course, that is due to St. Louis native Matthew Tkachuk winning back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Florida Panthers in each of the last two years.

Matthew Tkachuk was born in Arizona in 1997 when his father, Keith Tkachuk, was playing for the Phoenix Coyotes. However, it wasn't long before the Tkachuks moved to St. Louis, where one of the greatest hockey families found their new home.

Keith Tkachuk spent nine seasons with the St. Louis Blues from 2001 up until his last year in the NHL in 2010. Although he never won a Stanley Cup, he's now had a chance to celebrate two championships through his son.

Tkachuk brought the Stanley Cup back to St. Louis on Monday, and although it wasn't as busy of a day as last summer, he still hit up some of his favorite spots.

The first, and most important, stop was at the St. Louis Children's Hospital.

"It always starts off at Children's Hospital," Tkachuk said. "It's always the mandatory first stop. No ifs ands or buts. You have no idea what those kids are going through. Just to brighten up their day just for a minute, if that's all it takes to make their day and then for them to call their friends and say they had their day with the Cup, that's what it's all about.”

Then it was off to the Brentwood police station and fire departments, where he posed for pictures in a cell with the Stanley Cup.

"Coming here to the police station and the fire station, the first responders, the police and fire, that is what is so important to me," Tkachuk said. "I have so much respect for them. It's such a tough job... I love putting a smile on their faces too and then trying to make their day.”

It's been a summer of celebration for Tkachuk and his Panthers teammates, but he still has a soft spot for St. Louis.

"I'm super fortunate to be on such an unbelievable team," Tkachuk said. "But to bring the Cup back home to celebrate with friends and family is going to be incredible."