Former NHL referee destroys reporter on social media over criticism of Sens captain Brady Tkachuk

48 hours ago, a writer for The Athletic, Darren Haynes, took the former lane, criticizing Brady for his open fandom of his brother Matthew, stating "The captain of another NHL team being Matthew Tkachuk's super fan boy is just so, so weird to me." A former NHL official has weighed in and fed Haynes his lunch for the comment.

The name "Tim Peel" should ring a few bells for anyone who follows hockey with any regularity, as just last season, the long-time NHL referee was fired over a "hot mic" incident, wherein he said the quiet part out loud for all to hear in a game between the Detroit Red Wings and the Nashville Predators, admitting that he was actively looking to call a penalty against Nashville early in the game.

This time, Peel pulled no punches, speaking with purpose, pointing out the fact that it's not exactly a strange occurrence for a younger brother to look up to his older brother and support him in a way that is not out of the ordinary for siblings to do.

Whether you support the idea of one team's captain cheering for another team or not, it's fairly irrelevant. The Tkachuks are not going to worry about what people think from the outside. Their whole schtick is being unapologetically who they are. Plus, come on.. they're brothers.. The other thing is that I can guarantee you if it's Flames vs Senators, they're not cheering each other on.