MattDrai
Leon Draisaitl/Matthew Tkachuk
The Battle of Alberta's most personal feud — Tkachuk the league's premier pest, Draisaitl the German superstar who once sneered 'his game is fine' about him — became hockey RPF's favorite hate-ship. Their on-ice history of slashes, scrums, and grudging post-handshake respect culminated in facing off for the Stanley Cup. The fandom never needed them to like each other; the loathing was the point.
What is MattDrai?
MattDrai is the fan-given name for the romantic pairing of Leon Draisaitl and Matthew Tkachuk from Hockey RPF. With over 1,500 works on Archive of Our Own, it's one of the most popular ships in the fandom.
Why fans love MattDrai
He hates one specific player with career-defining intensity, and AO3 knows exactly what that means.
Most Popular MattDrai Fanfics
The highest-rated MattDrai stories on AO3, ranked by kudos.
i wonder if you'd take it slow
Completeby fraudulentzodiacs
Leon expects a snarky, asshat response from Tkachuk. Instead, he listens to Tkachuk over footage of himself playing with his mouth open in shock.“I think he’s a great player.” Tkachuk tells the interviewer. “I think he’s, uh, having a great year. I think both of them together is a really great one-t
i like the way the story ends
Completeby fraudulentzodiacs
“I can’t believe this is how you want to come out.” Leon grumbles, staring at Matty from across his hotel room. Matthew just smirks and holds his hand out, making grabby hands toward Leon.
Old Flames Burn Brighter
Completeby cisumox
"Do you think I did it on purpose?”Matt wants to know the answer, maybe more than anything else he’s here to do. It doesn’t change anything about the past. He still wants to know.Leon sighs just loudly enough that Matt can hear it across the space between them. “Welcome to Berlin, Matt.”Or: Matt shi
Need A Little Sweetness (In My Life)
Completeby puckinghell
Matty grins. “Well, I’ll come back. One day I’ll get you to make me one.”“The day I make you one is the day I spit in it,” Leon snides, before he can think better of it. Connor’s foot connects with his calf hard enough that Leon yelps.Matty just laughs.“You’re hot enough that that’s not really the t
what's new pussycat?
Completeby haroldslouis
"You couldn't have gotten Gary's cat pregnant?" Matt asks Teddy, who is lying in the windowsill. "You just had to get with the cat of the guy who hates my guts?"or: Matt and Leon are neighbors.
Collared
by magic1034
"What?" Matthew stared blankly at the coach in front of him who shifted in front of him in discomfort."You need to be collared,” Coach Huska reiterates.Matthew sighed, "I can't just get Gio to collar me and that be that right?"To the Coach's credit, he looked sorry as he replied, "Sorry, Matthew. Bu
Just Fine
Completeby kiminsocks
Matthew plays in Game 4. Leon sits on his living room couch in Edmonton, Bowie’s head on his lap, Stanley Cup Final playing on the flat screen. He watches as Matthew warms up, watches him favor his right side, sees the grimace of pain when he shoots the puck, covered up quickly with a tight smile an
Bewitched
Completeby Anonymous
Connor McDavid is hexed during a playoff game against the Jets and it’s somehow Matthew’s fault. Because this is his life.
enough to make you want
Completeby fraudulentzodiacs
After all, it’s not like Jonny would ask Patrick to move to Chicago, would claim Patrick as his sub and declare his undying love for him. He knows that Jonny probably has this arrangement with half a dozen other subs around the continent. Hell, Patrick assumes he most likely has more than one sub in
Poker Face
Completeby Keith_Wilde
When Matthew and Leon wake up married in Las Vegas, neither wants to show their hand. But when it comes to love, maybe a bad poker face is a good thing.It's the Vegas Wedding, All-Star Game trope mashup!
bad choices don’t make themselves
Completeby 2pretty_2die
The last thing Matthew expected to hear when he woke up this morning was his five year old son announcing that not only has he found his favorite NHL team, but also his favorite player. Matthew Tkachuk’s son is an Oilers fan. And to add insult to injury, he was also a Leon Draisaitl fan. — — — — Wha
hearteyes
Completeby fraudulentzodiacs
He caught the replay after he got back to Calgary, how he had smiled at Leon and Leon had smiled back, and sent it to Leon. people are going to figure out you actually like me if you keep smiling at me like that
falling so fast (falling like stars)
Completeby fraudulentzodiacs
Brady notices him the minute the McDavid pack arrives. They had been planning for this moment for months – years, probably, though Brady’s parents hadn’t mentioned it until they had entered into official negotiations with Alpha McDavid eight months ago – but now the day was here. Matty was getting m
Like a Rainbow
Completeby Anonymous
Leon wakes up to the sound of his phone ringing. He checks the time and hits ignore; there’s no reason anyone should expect him to be awake at 5 am. He groans, wondering why he didn’t have his phone on Do Not Disturb like he normally does, and buries his face under his pillow.Ten seconds later, his
please don't go (please come home)
Completeby fraudulentzodiacs
The words had left his mouth before Matty had even had time to consider them. Careless, thoughtless words had always been a hallmark of their arguments, finding just the right way to hurt each other the most with the least amount of effort. If they were rough with each other physically on the ice, i
A Full 60 Minutes
Completeby Keith_Wilde
On the day Leon plans to propose to Matthew, Darnell asks why they work. This is Leon's attempt to answer. Or, five times Leon can't explain why he and Matthew go together, and one time he absolutely can.
Matthew Tkachuk Friendship Tour, The B-Sides, Part 1
Completeby brinicles
'Games that matter' is bullshit, obviously, all the games matter. You play games that matter in November and you'll play games that matter in March. If you don't end up playing games that matter in March? Then the games in November didn't matter. They could both still make playoffs. Matthew makes su
nhl gay support group
by 5minutemajor
after conducting some...research, mitch marner decides to launch a gay nhl groupchat. it goes about as well as you might think.*this is set during the 2023-24 NHL season*
I'll Always Think You're Perfect
Completeby emperorpenguin (dortmundbvbbabe)
Matthew rarely has his shirt off in photos and at first Leon doesn't think much of it, but the more he thinks about it, the more he wonders if there's a reason why. He finds out that Matthew has insecurities and Leon thinks he's perfect no matter what.
meet me where the falling stars live. i will wait for you day and night.
Completeby vikkyarvidsson
Everyone is born with a mark. The mark identifies your soulmate. It's their name. You have a connection with them unlike any other. You can feel each other's emotions, hear each other's thoughts, everything. When you meet for the first time, it's supposed to feel right. Brady was born with a name sc
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does MattDrai mean?
MattDrai is the ship name (portmanteau or nickname) for the pairing of Leon Draisaitl and Matthew Tkachuk. It's used by fans to tag and search for fanfiction featuring this relationship.
How many MattDrai fics are on AO3?
There are over 1,500 MattDrai fanfiction works on Archive of Our Own.
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