Before their on-ice clash Tuesday night, the Tkachuk brothers are holding a Monday autograph session with fans.
The Tkachuk brothers have no shortage of side hustles these days.
Earlier this season, they announced the creation of their new weekly podcast, “Wingmen."
“For us, it’s super exciting,” Matthew said back in November on The Pat McAfee Show. “We’re just super excited. We FaceTime pretty much daily or weekly. Now we’re getting paid to do it once a week, are you kidding me?"
Now, on Monday night, as they prepare to face off against each other on Tuesday night in Sunrise, Florida, the brothers will be signing autographs for fans and collectors.
Brady's penmanship goes for $100 per autograph, while Matthew's is $150. For a photo-op with both players and their gold medals, it's $250.
There's also a $1000 VIP treatment. That includes two autographs from each player, the aforementioned photo op, priority line access, private VIP lounge with snacks and beverages, and a swag bag that includes a replica gold medal.
It is not clear from the promotional materials how the evening's proceeds will be divided or if there might be a charity involved.
The event is being held on Monday evening at a mall in Wellington, Florida, which is about an hour's drive away from Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise. That's where Brady and the Ottawa Senators will be to face the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night.
While pay-for-autograph events like these are not uncommon for pro athletes, this session spurred some debate online this week after Montreal Gazette columnist Stu Cowan posted on X that the Tkachuk brothers would be “cashing in on Olympic gold medals by selling autographs,” and then mentioned their current salaries.
Some fans suggested that well-paid pro athletes should never be part of charging fans for autographs. Others felt it was no big deal, no different than any other endorsement arrangement. Some simply didn't like the timing of the event, scheduled the night before a huge game.
Ottawa native Jamie Rivers, a former St. Louis Blues defenceman who's known the Tkachuk family for a long time, came to the players' defence in replying to Cowan:
"Because Jordan, Lebron, Shaq, Bonds, Jeter, Rodriguez, etc, never made money away from the game? Also, are you sure they’re not donating a portion to charity? I mean, the Ball family profited without even winning anything. Let's at least get all of the facts straight."
One of the other facts is that Tkachuk has been nothing but gracious and giving of his time when interacting with fans back in Ottawa. Monday's paid appearance won't change that, nor will his young fans ever have to start walking around with a C-note in their pocket.
While Matthew's Panthers are all but eliminated from the playoff race, Brady and the Senators are still very much in the hunt. Ottawa has nine games to play and stands two points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets for the final playoff spot in the East, and with a difficult schedule ahead, this is a game the Senators have to have.
Because of Matthew's long-term injury in the first half of 2025-26, Tuesday will be the first on-ice meeting between the Tkachuks this season. They meet one more time, nine days later, in Ottawa.
Steve Warne
The Hockey News
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