‘I don’t give a s**t’: Tkachuk brothers don’t care about smaller Olympic hockey ice
Over the past week and change, a slow drip of concerning stories about the status of the hockey arena set to host competition at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.
The rink, which was already known to not be set as a standard Olympic-sized surface, is actually going to be a few feet shorter than the NHL-size rink that the league was expecting under its agreement with the IIHF.
Then there’s the matter of the construction timeline. There’s some question surrounding the likelihood of the arena being fully built in time for the beginning of competition on February 5. NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly told Daily Faceoff‘s Matt Larkin that NHL players will not go if the rink is not ready.
On a recent episode of their podcast Wingmen, brothers and Team USA stars Matthew and Brady Tkachuk sounded off with their thoughts on the recent concerns, making their thoughts clear.
“I don’t give a s**it, I’m going over there,” Matthew said. “Even if it’s not safe, I still want to play.”
“We’re going there no matter what,” Brady added.
Matthew: “I don’t give a s**t, I’m going over there.” Brady: “We’re going there no matter what.” Rink size isn’t stopping the guys from going to the Olympics 🇺🇲
The Tkachuk brothers got their first taste of international best-on-best hockey earlier this year at the 4 Nations Face-Off event when their Team USA squad defeated Canada in the round robin portion of the tournament before falling to the Canadians in the championship match.
Matthew and Brady made waves in the first matchup between the two bitter rivals when they dropped the gloves with Brandon Hagel and Sam Bennett at the outset of the game.
Matthew suffered an injury during the event and attempted to gut it out for the championship game, but he was forced out of action early. After winning a second straight Stanley Cup championship with the Florida Panthers while playing through some issues, the elder Tkachuk has yet to play a game this year with a torn adductor and sports hernia.
Brady has also been in and out of the lineup with the Ottawa Senators this season, recording seven points in eight games while skating an average of 17:27 per night.