Florida Panthers captain Sasha Barkov has entered the Hockey Hall of Fame.
While Barkov may be on his way to adding his name to those enshrined in Toronto’s historic hockey shrine, 29-year-old Finn can now find his photo in the hall, along with a new friend: the Stanley Cup.
During Barkov’s day with the Cup over the summer, he did something pretty unique.
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Barkov, who had just become the first Finnish-born captain to hoist the Lord Stanley’s Cup, spent his day with the historic trophy in his hometown of Tampere.
It was there that Barkov teamed up with Finnish professional skateboarder Marius Syvänen to make a little history.
While Barkov and Keeper of the Cup Phil Pritchard kept a close eye, Syvänen and his board sailed over the 35.25-inch Stanley Cup.
The amazing photo of the jump, taken by Finnish photographer Keke Leppala, is now in the Hockey Hall of Fame.
It’s just a little icing on the cake for Barkov.
This week he is back in Finland with his Panthers teammates for the NHL Global Series.
Florida plays the Dallas Stars on Friday and Saturday in Tampere, with Barkov living his dream of playing an NHL game a mile from where he grew up.
“It’s great, especially in my hometown,” Barkov said. “All my friends are there and it will be fun to play for them.”
Florida has a 7-3-1 record through its first eleven games, including wins in five straight road games.
Dallas has played nine games so far, winning seven of them. They are a perfect 5-0-0 on home ice.
Friday’s game at Nokia Arena kicks off at 1:00 PM ET, while the puck drops at 11:00 AM ET on Saturday.
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