Matthew Tkachuk sends message to Jayson Tatum after Panthers Stanley Cup victory

The real winner of the last seven days in the world of professional sports might be Chaminade College Preparatory School in St. Louis.

Last Monday, St. Louis native and Chaminade alum Jayson Tatum hoisted the Larry O’Brien Trophy when his Boston Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 of the 2024 NBA Finals to win their 18th NBA championship. history of the franchise.

Exactly one week later, St. Louis native and Chaminade alum Matthew Tkachuk hoisted the Stanley Cup when his Florida Panthers defeated the Edmonton Oilers in Game 7 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals to win their first championship in franchise history.

However, Tatum and Tkachuk don’t just share an alma mater. They were actually classmates at Chaminade and good friends who even participated in school projects together.

After Tatum finished the job last Monday, the C’s star put the ball in Tkachuk’s court to win another championship for St. Louis.

Tkachuk’s Panthers almost blew it, losing Games 4, 5 and 6 after taking a 3-0 series lead against the Oilers. But after winning Game 7 at home Monday to win the Stanley Cup, Tkachuk sent a touching message to his former classmate.

“Hey, two champions from St. Louis, are you kidding me right now? Are you kidding me?” Tkachuk told What chaos! to show. “Chaminade, everyone there, all the teachers, classmates, you should all be very proud. Two champions, baby.”

Tatum and Tkachuk have indeed made St. Louis proud, as both players are stars on their respective teams who have helped their franchises overcome difficulties after recent championship round losses (Boston in the final of the NBA 2022 and Florida in the 2023 Stanley Cup final). .

It’s unclear if this is the first time two former elementary school teammates have won championships in different sports in the same year, but at the very least, Chaminade should take a victory lap Tuesday morning.