Thomas gets a new roommate
After securing a roster spot with the Blues, Robert Thomas has also secured a new roommate: former Blue Keith Tkachuk
by Chris Pinkert / St. Louis Blues
Be a good teammate.
Work hard.
Give 110 percent every shift.
Don't touch the remote.
Those are the rules
Robert Thomas will have to abide by for the foreseeable future if he hopes to be a good roommate and get his rookie season in the NHL off to a good start. Now that the 19-year-old has moved from simply hoping to earn a roster spot with the St. Louis Blues to actually earning one, he has just one more move to make, and that's moving all of his stuff into former Blue Keith Tkachuk's basement.
"I know what it was like at that age when I was a young guy being on my own in the NHL," Tkachuk said. "Together with (Blues General Manager) Doug Armstrong, we thought it would be a good idea to have Robby come live with us. These kids aren't equipped yet to take care of themselves, so we thought it would be a good idea to take him in and make him part of the family."
Keith and his wife, Chantal, are no strangers to having incredibly talented athletes under their roof. Their oldest son, Matthew, moved out in August to begin his third season with the Calgary Flames. Brady Tkachuk, who was drafted by Ottawa in the first round last June, made his NHL debut on Monday against the Boston Bruins, and their daughter, Taryn, although still living at home, is an accomplished field hockey player.
While some parents see their children growing up and moving out as an opportunity to relax and take it easy, the Tkachuks are quite the opposite. They simply adopt someone else.
They have a history of doing it, actually.
Thomas is hoping he can find success in the NHL in the same way that Keith's other apprentices have, but first and foremost, he's just trying to stay out of trouble with his landlord.
So what's the best way to play it safe?
"Stay out of his chair and don't touch the controller," said Matthew Tkachuk, who was Thomas' teammate with the Ontario Hockey League's London Knights when they won the Memorial Cup in 2016. "My dad definitely doesn't like it when anybody touches the controller other than him, and he has his seat in the house that nobody is allowed to sit in but him. I think those would be my only two pieces of advice..."
"...Oh, wait, there's one more," Matthew added. "You're not watching anything on TV on Thursday night other than Blue Bloods."