Tillie Backlund, the daughter of Mikael Backlund, is capturing the hearts of Calgary Flames fans yet again.
Last season, many fans, along with Backlund himself, got emotional after seeing Tillie read out the team’s starting lineup ahead of an outing in which her dad became second all-time in games played in Flames franchise history.
On a special night for Backs, a couple of very special guests were on hand to read the starting lineup 🥹 pic.twitter.com/4bJgM1w6is
— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) January 10, 2024
Backlund recently celebrated another major milestone: playing in the 1,000th game of his NHL career. The Flames captain’s game 1000 came on the road, meaning the ceremony at the Saddledome happened prior to 1,001. Once again, his daughter Tillie and son Oliver stole the show in the best way possible.
“DADDY!”
Tillie Backlund was mic’d up during her dad’s 1000th @NHL game ceremony 🥹 pic.twitter.com/6Jf0LYv2dh
— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) November 8, 2024
As his tradition, Backlund received a silver stick for hitting a major milestone. In a touching gesture, the Flames also had two mini silver sticks made for Tillie and Oliver, who both appeared to be ecstatic. A mic’d-up Tillie can even be heard asking, “Can I bring it to my school?”
As good as the night was for the Backlunds, Tillie had one more big moment as she led the T-shirt toss partway through the first period.
The T-shirts being thrown out were actually designed by Tillie last season. Already sold out, the shirts featured an image she drew of her dad, and proceeds from the sales were donated to Kids Cancer Care.
Tillie Backlund is an artist!
This t-shirt graphic features a hand-drawn image that Tillie created of her Dad, #Flames Captain Mikael Backlund.
Proceeds from sales will be donated to @KidsCancerCare.https://t.co/JFhPeGMxuD pic.twitter.com/KQIxeGmAEA
— Derek Wills (@Fan960Wills) March 21, 2024
The Flames capped off the Backlund family’s night with a big 3-0 win over the New Jersey Devils.
“It means the world to me and my family. We’re so proud to call ourselves Calgarians. It’s our home,” Backlund said. “It feels really, really special to do it just with Calgary. It’s an honour to play 1,000 games for the Calgary Flames.”
Backlund has also recently said he has no plans to retire anytime soon. That comment, combined with his contract carrying through the 2025-26 season, means fans should continue to see plenty more Tillie and Oliver content moving forward.
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