NHL Legends Congratulate Panthers Captain

Multiple NHL icons sent special messages to Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov for his historic Stanley Cup win.

Feb 18, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins former center Mario Lemieux waves to the crowd during a ceremony to retire the jersey number of Penguins former right wing Jaromir Jagr (not pictured) at PPG Paints Arena. The Penguins hosted the Los Angeles Kings after the ceremony. Los Angeles won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports / Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The Florida Panthers’ summer of celebration rolls on as players and executives spend their days with the Stanley Cup. Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov took the Cup to his native Finland, where a massive celebration took place.

The day started with Barkov teaching the Cup a new trick on a skateboard, but things picked up throughout the day. Rightfully so, Barkov made history by becoming the first Finnish-born captain to win the Cup.

Tampere, Finland, was changed to “Barkov City” for the day as he took the Cup around town and capped everything off with a celebration at Nokia Arena. While fans packed the celebration, plenty of Finnish hockey legends, celebrities, and even Finland President Alexander Stubb was on hand.

Current and former Finnish NHLers were either in attendance or sent congratulatory messages, but a few extra special videos were sent from North America.

Hall of Famers Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Chris Chelios all sent messages congratulating the historic achievement.

A few legends congratulate Barkov! 🫡 pic.twitter.com/D7KkyeRzzg

— Jameson Olive (@JamesonCoop) July 31, 2024

“I had the privilege of playing with two great Finns, Jari Kurri and Esa Tikkanen,” Gretzky said. “Alex, congratualtions on being the first Finnish captain to win the Stanley Cup.”

Gretzky captained the Edmonton Oilers to four Cup championships, each with at least Kurri by his side.

“You’ve done your country proud,” Gretzky continued. “The State of Florida, and of course, your hockey team. Congratulations.”

Lemieux spoke highly of the year Barkov and the Panthers had before, noting just how proud Finland must be.

“I would like to congratulate you on an amazing year,” Lemieux said. “A great playoff run, winning the Stanley Cup. We all know it’s something very, very special and very difficult to win… I’m sure there’s a lot of proud people in Finland with you there tonight.”

Lemieux captained the Pittsburgh Penguins to back-to-back Cups in 1991 and 1992 and later won three more (2009, 2016, and 2017) as Penguins owner.

Chelios opened his message to Barkov by saying you should always be proud of where you’re from.

“Congrats on the Stanley Cup,” Chelios continued. “Quite an honor ti be the first Finnish captain to ever win it. I was cheering for you.”

Chelios played over 25 seasons in the NHL and won the Cup three times, once with the Montreal Canadiens in 1986 and twice with the Detroit Red Wings in 2001 and 2008.

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