RUN IT BACK! The Florida Panthers Repeat as Stanley Cup Champions

RUN IT BACK! The Florida Panthers Repeat as Stanley Cup Champions

The Lineup EDITOR Gene Myers ASSISTANT EDITOR Mike Brehm REPORTERS Mike Brehm Hal Habib Tom D’Angelo Alexander Peterman POST SPORTS EDITOR Nick Pugliese

About the book “RUN IT BACK!” condenses a year’s worth of coverage of the Florida Panthers from the USA TODAY Network and The Palm Beach Post. Follow the Panthers at usatoday.com and palmbeachpost.com. Order a print subscription or access to the eNewspaper for USA TODAY at 800-872-0001. Order print and digital subscriptions for The Post at 800-926-7678.

On the cover The Florida Panthers posed for posterity with the Stanley Cup for the second straight season on June 17, 2025, at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida. With a 5-1 victory in Game 6, the Panthers turned back the Edmonton Oilers for a second straight season in the Stanley Cup Final. The Conn Smythe Trophy as MVP of the playoffs went to center Sam Bennett. SAM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES

DESIGNERS Joey Schaffer Lee Benson PROOFREADER Heather Hewitt FACT-CHECKER Sherrill Amo

PREVIOUS PAGE: Panthers goaltender

Sergei Bobrovsky skated with the Stanley Cup after the Game 6 victory. In 2024, captain Aleksander Barkov first gave the Cup to Bobrovsky, but in 2025, Barkov decided first-time champions would be the first to skate with the trophy. S AM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES

PROJECT COORDINATOR Gene Myers SPECIAL THANKS Alicia Del Gallo, Chris Thomas, Kristin Roberts, Chris Fenison, Vanessa Cotton, Kirkland Crawford, 2018 Yaks

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of the copyright owner or the publisher.

Published by Pediment Publishing, a division of The Pediment Group, Inc. • www.pediment.com Printed in Canada.

This book is an unofficial account of the Florida Panthers’ 2024-25 season by The Palm Beach Post and USA TODAY and is not endorsed by the Florida Panthers or the NHL.

Copyright © 2025 by The Palm Beach Post and USA TODAY All Rights Reserved • ISBN: 978-1-63846-166-1

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CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

THE SEASON

THE PLAYOFFS

THE GLORY

The Florida Panthers Repeat as Stanley Cup Champions

Matthew Tkachuk missed the last 25 games of the regular season with an adductor muscle torn from the bone, but he hoisted the Stanley Cup for the second straight season after gutting out 23 playoff games in which he scored 23 points on eight goals and 15 assists. JIM RASSOL / IMAGN IMAGES

INTRODUCTION • 3

FOREWORD

After second straight Stanley Cup, Panthers on the verge of a dynasty MIKE BREHM | USA TODAY

A S T H E F L O R I D A PA N T H E R S marked their second consecutive Stanley Cup title with a celebration at the Elbo Room in Fort Lauderdale, fans began shouting, “Eight more years” at Sam Bennett and he joined in.

The chants rang out in hopes that Bennett, a 29-year-old center and the MVP of the playoffs, would sign a maximum-length contract and stay with the Panthers for the long term.

And maybe there was a sense among fans of a dynasty in the works.

The Panthers were the first team to lose in a Stanley Cup Final and win the next two since Wayne Gretzky’s Edmonton Oilers in the mid-1980s. The Panthers will try to become the first team to win three Cups in a row since the New York Islanders in the early ’80s.

The Panthers’ 2024-25 run might

have been harder than their 2023-24 one, the team’s first championship that took 30 years to accomplish. General manager Bill Zito re-signed Sam Reinhart in the offseason, but Brandon Montour, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and other free agents headed elsewhere.

Then Matthew Tkachuk was injured at the 4 Nations Face-Off and missed the rest of the regular season. Captain (and Selke Trophy winner) Aleksander Barkov and Bennett also missed games down the stretch.

Zito addressed the team’s biggest need, a top-four defenseman, by trading for Seth Jones. He shocked the hockey world on deadline day by trading for Brad Marchand, the longtime Bruins captain who was injured at the time. But those moves were tempered when the team lost defenseman Aaron Ekblad for 20 games down the stretch because of a PED suspension.

Florida finished third in the Atlantic

Division and had to start every playoff series on the road. But the Panthers got past the Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs (overcoming a 2-0 series deficit), Carolina Hurricanes and Edmonton Oilers (for the second year in a row in the Final) to lift the Stanley Cup again. They did it with Niko Mikkola, Barkov, Reinhart, Ekblad and Tkachuk missing some time or playing hurt in the postseason.

The Panthers’ forechecking forced turnovers and wore down their opponents over the long run. Their depth allowed coach Paul Maurice to sub out his entire fourth

MIKE BREHM WAS HOCKEY editor at USA TODAY for 22 years, starting in 1993, the year that the Florida Panthers entered the NHL. He went to five Winter Olympics.

He continues to write about hockey for USA TODAY.

OPPOSITE: After commissioner Gary Bettman presented the Stanley Cup to Aleksander Barkov, he skated it to his teammates so that

everyone could touch it. After he did the captain’s lap with the Cup, it went to defenseman Nate Schmidt. S AM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES

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INTRODUCTION • 5

The Palm Beach Post | THURSDAY, JUNE 19, 2025 | 1B

line before Game 3 against Toronto to turn that series around. He could plug players in the lineup and get contributions to deal with injuries. He could roll four lines.

Six players had 20 or more points in the Panthers’ 23 playoff games. Another five players had at least 12 points. Every defenseman chipped in at least a goal and a total of 18 goals came from the blue line.

Sergei Bobrovsky made spectacular saves.

The Panthers ran it back for the franchise’s second title, and now they will run it back again for the 2024-25 season with mostly the same lineup, even when that seemed like it would be difficult.

Days after the championship parade and rally, Bennett re-signed for eight years. Ekblad did the same. Marchand signed for six years. Tomas Nosek came back on a one-year deal.

Every forward who played in the Game 6 clincher against the Oilers was under contract for 2025-26, and a large chunk of the Panthers’ core was signed through 2030 or beyond.

Once again, the Panthers will be a favorite to win it all when they open the 2025-26 season and raise another Stanley Cup banner on Oct. 7.

RIGHT: The Palm Beach Post celebrated the

Panthers’ 2025 Stanley Cup with this front page of its Sports section. MARC JENKINS / USA TODAY NETWORK

OPPOSITE: South Florida’s Cups runneth

over! Brad Marchand showed off the real Stanley Cup during the championship parade and rally, to which plenty of fans brought along homemade replicas.

S AM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES

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SPORTS SPORTS

The Florida Panthers pose with the Stanley Cup after winning Game 6 of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final 5-1 against the Edmonton Oilers at Amerant Bank Arena on June 17 in Sunrise. The Panthers won the series 4-2. SAM NAVARRO/IMAGN IMAGES, ILLUSTRATION BY MARC JENKINS/USA TODAY NETWORK

BACK-TO-BACK CHAMPIONS! Panthers earn dynasty status after winning second Cup in a row

Genius GM Zito built Panthers via trades, earns title of legend

S

Hal Habib Columnist Palm Beach

UNRISE — For more than half a century, aqua and orange have been the predominant colors South Florida fans could identify with.

The Miami Heat broke away from the Miami Dolphins, riding a “White Hot”

S

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, left, presents

UNRISE — There was Florida Panthers star Sam Reinhart, skating right around an Edmonton Oilers defenseman, falling down, yet going backhand to forehand and beating Stuart Skinner, again.

Joe Schad Columnist Palm Beach

INTRODUCTION • 7

Overheard “All of the little things on here mean so much. Like the palm trees, the state of Florida, how cool the logo looks and everything. I love the line through each team we played against.”

Matthew Tkachuk

from the 2024 playoff run, the date the Panthers won the Stanley Cup, a rat on the inside to honor a longstanding tradition from South Florida fans, a WWE-style championship belt, the panther head logo, the Stanley Cup itself, a pair of palm trees and a big red gem on the state of Florida representing Broward County.

“It’s a masterpiece,” general manager Bill Zito said. “It’s elegant and it’s beautiful.”

“All of the little things on here mean so much,” Tkachuk said. “Like the palm trees, the state of Florida, how cool the 20 • RUN IT BACK!

logo looks and everything. I love the line through each team we played against.”

As a bit of motivation for this season, Carter Verhaeghe arrived at the auditorium wearing his championship ring earned with the 2021 Tampa Bay Lightning. That prompted Bennett to say: “Two rings looks pretty cool on your hands, so I’d love to fill up my hand a little bit more.”

The Bruins were the perfect opponent to keep this party going well into the next night. Each side had a healthy dislike for the another — coach Paul Maurice said the playoff series with Boston was as

“hard physically and demanding” as any the Panthers played — and it showed in a chippy, penalty-filled opening night that saw gloves drop several times.

“Kind of felt like that was the closing to last season,” Evan Rodrigues said, “and then we kind of flipped the page immediately and got to our game and got to chasing another one.”

But it certainly wasn’t Boston’s intention to extend the celebration. The banner barely had stopped waving when Bennett got the Stanley Cup defense off to a rousing start, knocking a bouncing puck past

LEFT: Panthers center Sam Bennett (9) celebrated the season’s first goal with his teammates, beating Boston’s Joonas Korpisalo at 6:27 of the first period. Evan Rodrigues had the lone assist. Left wing A.J. Greer earned the season’s first penalty, five minutes for fighting with Boston’s Mark Kastelic at 5:55 of the period. SAM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES OPPOSITE: The Panthers’

Joonas Korpisalo about 6½ minutes into the game.

Three more Panthers goals followed before the first period concluded, including a second by Bennett. All that was left for the Panthers crowd was to mock the Bruins by chanting, “We want Swayman.” Jeremy Swayman, Boston’s No. 1 goalie, was given the night off after ending a contract dispute two days before the opener.

By the way, Swayman’s job was safe.

Two of Boston’s goals came in the final three minutes, making this game appear more competitive than it really was.

“We looked right and fast and skated very well,” Maurice said. “It was the banner for sure, but it was actually the fans.

It was wired. A great buzz in the building.

We played off that.

“This was a great way to start the season. You know you’re not wading into it.”

Maurice called the banner raising “clean and simple” and “respectful of the other team” because it was not long and drawn out. As per tradition, South Florida hockey fans tossed rats on the ice after the victory.

The Panthers got the better of the

Bruins, just as they had in their last two playoff runs. Still, this series had been as even as one could get in recent years. In their last 22 meetings, each had won 11 games and each had scored 74 goals.

“I think there’s a bit of a rivalry there and continuously growing,” said Rodrigues, who scored in the third period. “You have two teams that are battling it out. Two teams that will hopefully and likely battle it out in the playoffs.”

When the Panthers start chasing another banner-raising ceremony.

— Colby Guy contributed.

championship rings from Jostens included an etched rat on the inside.

The rat tradition started in the 1995-96 season when Florida’s Scott Mellanby killed one in Miami Arena.

He scored two goals that night, which a teammate called a “rat trick.”

Fans began throwing plastic rats on the ice after the Panthers scored goals that season, in which they went to the Stanley Cup Final in the franchise’s third year. The Panthers were swept in the championship round as Avalanche goalie Patrick Roy told his teammates “no more rats” after he gave up a goal in Game 3. He shut out the Panthers the rest of the way, including a 1-0 triple-overtime victory in Game 4.

The NHL, which didn’t appreciate the long cleanup needed after goals, changed rules that offseason to make throwing items on the ice after a goal subject to a delay of game penalty. So now rats got tossed after victories. J OSTENS

THE SEASON • 21

MARCH 1, 2025 W 37-21-3 77 PTS

PANTHERS 3, FLAMES 0 GAME 61 SUNRISE

With his daughter Carolina in his arms, goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky listened to the U.S. and Canadian national anthems, a change of pace for the team’s fathers because it was kids day at Amerant Bank Arena. Once the puck dropped, Bobrovsky stopped 23 shots for his third shutout of the season, 14th as a Panther and 47th of his career. Jonah Gadjovich and Evan Rodrigues scored in the second period, and Mackie Samoskevich scored with 3:52 left in the game. Florida played a video tribute to Flames forward Ryan Lomberg, who played for the 2024 champs before exiting as a free agent. Fans stood cheering, Florida’s bench banged sticks and Lomberghini waved, jumped the boards and skated to center ice. S AM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES 56 • RUN IT BACK!

MARCH 3, 2025 W 38-21-3 79 PTS

PANTHERS 2, LIGHTNING 1 GAME 62 SUNRISE

Aleksander Barkov dueled with Brayden Point in the first period.

In the second, Barkov scored an unassisted goal at 9:02 and a power-play goal at 15:16 for a 2-0 lead. Defenseman Seth Jones, acquired from Chicago, made his debut as the Panthers ended the Lightning’s eight-game winning streak. S AM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES

MARCH 6, 2025 W 39-21-3 81 PTS

PANTHERS 3, BLUE JACKETS 0 GAME 63 SUNRISE

Sergei Bobrovsky made 16 saves for his second shutout in three games, and the Panthers won their fifth straight game and 10th in their last 12 games. Bobrovsky’s 423rd victory tied him with Tony Esposito for 10th place. Sam Reinhart and Aleksander Barkov each recorded a goal and two assists. SAM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES

THE SEASON • 57

APRIL 12, 2025 W 47-29-4 98 PTS

APRIL 14, 2025 L 47-30-4 98 PTS

PANTHERS 3, SABRES 2 (SO)

RANGERS 5, PANTHERS 3

GAME 80 SUNRISE

GAME 81 SUNRISE

ABOVE LEFT: Up first in the shootout, Anton Lundell, shown in a different game, beat Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen with a wrist shot. The Panthers prevailed when the next five skaters

failed to score. Vitek Vanecek was in net. Carter Verhaeghe and Jesse Puljujarvi scored in the second period in Florida’s third straight victory. S AM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES ABOVE RIGHT: In the home finale, Sam Bennett returned, and Seth Jones (3) looked for an open man. Sam Reinhart’s 38th and 39th goals built a 3-1 lead with six minutes left in the

second period. But New York scored the last four goals. Florida was locked into third place in its division, which meant opening the playoffs on the road. SAM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES 72 • RUN IT BACK!

NHL Standings Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W Toronto 52 Tampa Bay 47 Florida 47 Ottawa 45 Montreal 40 Detroit 39 Buffalo 36 Boston 33

APRIL 15, 2025 L 47-31-4 98 PTS

LIGHTNING 5, PANTHERS 1 GAME 82 TAMPA

L 26 27 31 30 31 35 39 39

OT 4 8 4 7 11 8 7 10

Pts 108 102 98 97 91 86 79 76

GF 268 294 252 243 245 238 269 222

GA 231 219 223 234 265 259 289 272

Metropolitan Division W L Washington 51 22 Carolina 47 30 New Jersey 42 33 Columbus 40 33 N.Y. Rangers 39 36 N.Y. Islanders 35 35 Pittsburgh 34 36 Philadelphia 33 39

OT 9 5 7 9 7 12 12 10

Pts 111 99 91 89 85 82 80 76

GF 288 266 242 273 256 224 243 238

GA 232 233 222 268 255 260 293 286

Western Conference Central Division W Winnipeg 56 Dallas 50 Colorado 49 Minnesota 45 St. Louis 44 Utah 38 Nashville 30 Chicago 25

L 22 26 29 30 30 31 44 46

OT 4 6 4 7 8 13 8 11

Pts 116 106 102 97 96 89 68 61

GF 277 277 277 228 254 241 214 226

GA 191 224 234 239 233 251 274 296

L 22 25 29 27 30 37 41 50

OT 10 9 5 14 14 10 6 12

Pts 110 105 101 96 90 80 76 52

GF 275 250 259 225 236 221 247 210

GA 219 206 236 238 253 263 265 315

Pacific Division

Brad Marchand’s second goal as a Panther — and 23rd for the season — didn’t elicit a ton of excitement. In the season finale,

Florida pretty much was playing out the string. They were locked into third place in the Atlantic Division, knowing that in a week or so they would return to Amalie Arena to open the playoffs against the Lightning. Florida played without Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart, Gustav Forsling, Anton Lundell and A.J. Greer (who had played in all 81 games). After Marchand’s goal, the Panthers still trailed Tampa Bay 4-1 in the second period. “That’s an example of nine games in 15 days,” coach Paul Maurice told reporters. At 47-31-4 with 98 points, Florida had 12 fewer points than in 2023-24. The Eastern Conference matchups: Top half — No. 1 Toronto vs. No. 1 wild card Ottawa, No. 2 Tampa Bay vs. No. 3 Florida. Bottom half — No. 1 Washington vs. No. 2 wild card Montreal, No. 2 Carolina vs. No. 3 New Jersey. K IM KLEMENT NEITZEL / IMAGN IMAGES

Vegas Los Angeles Edmonton Calgary Vancouver Anaheim Seattle San Jose

W 50 48 48 41 38 35 35 20

THE SEASON • 73

EASTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND

APRIL 22, 2025 W 1-0

PANTHERS 6, LIGHTNING 2 GAME 1 TAMPA

After a stellar age-36 season with a 2.44 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage, Sergei Bobrovsky started the playoffs in fine form by stopping 20 of 22 shots. Just as in

2024, the Panthers opened with the Lightning; unlike in 2024, Game 1 was at Amalie Arena instead of Amerant Bank Arena. No problem! Matthew Tkachuk, who played for the first time in two months, recorded two goals and an assist — all on power plays. Defenseman Nate Schmidt, who had five goals all season, scored twice. Sam Bennett, who had the first goal of the regular season, scored the first of the playoffs, redirecting in midair a pass from Mackie Samoskevich at 3:44 on the first period. KIM KLEMENT NEITZEL / IMAGN IMAGES 76 • RUN IT BACK!

EASTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND

APRIL 24, 2025 W 2-0

PANTHERS 2, LIGHTNING 0 GAME 2 TAMPA

Matthew Tkachuk prepared to give Sergei Bobrovsky a big ol’ bear hug after his fourth playoff shutout. He stopped 19 shots — including several point-blank trying to protect a one-goal

lead for 55 minutes. Nate Schmidt — averaging a goal every 10.9 playoff games before becoming a Panther — scored his third goal of the series at 4:45 of the first period, and Sam Bennett didn’t score Game 2’s second goal until four seconds remained. Schmidt became the second defenseman since 1943-44 to record the game-winner in Games 1 and 2 in a series; Detroit’s Nicklas Lidstrom did it in 2007. Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov, who led the NHL with 121 points, had one assist and three shots after two games. NATHAN RAY SEEBECK / IMAGN IMAGES THE PLAYOFFS • 77

EASTERN CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS

MAY 9, 2025 W 1-2

PANTHERS 5, MAPLE LEAFS 4 (OT) GAME 3 SUNRISE

In a game that took 3 hours, 25 minutes and put the Panthers’ chances of repeating in dire straits, Brad Marchand jumped for joy after his shot deflected off Toronto’s Morgan Rielly and

into the net with 4:33 left in overtime. When Matthew Knies scored at 23 seconds, the Panthers were staring at a three games to none deficit, which only four teams had overcome.

Then 5½ minutes later, John Tavares made it 2-0. Aleksander Barkov answered, but Tavares made it 3-1 early in the second period. Soon after, Sam Bennett and Carter Verhaeghe scored 64 seconds apart to tie it. Jonah Gadjovich put Florida ahead, but Rielly tied it midway through the third period. Then Marchand delivered in OT. S AM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES 84 • RUN IT BACK!

EASTERN CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS

MAY 11, 2025 W 2-2

PANTHERS 2, MAPLE LEAFS 0 GAME 4 SUNRISE

Defenseman Jake McCabe laid the lumber on Brad Marchand, who had two goals and five assists in his last five games, had never lost to the Maple Leafs in four series and was

celebrating his 37th birthday. Carter Verhaeghe scored on a power play with 4:15 left in the first period, Sam Bennett scored with 7:51 left in the third period and Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 23 shots for his second shutout of the playoffs. Marchand was held off the scoresheet but willingly participated in full-scale mischief at the final buzzer. Max Domi drew a five-minute major for boarding Aleksander Barkov, and Toronto’s Bobby McMann and Aaron Ekblad and Marchand earned 10-minute misconducts. KIM KLEMENT NEITEL / IMAGN IMAGES THE PLAYOFFS • 85

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

MAY 24, 2025 W 3-0

PANTHERS 6, HURRICANES 2 GAME 3 SUNRISE

Desperate to avoid a three games to none deficit, the Hurricanes played for their playoff lives. After 40 minutes, the teams were deadlocked at 1. Then Amerant Bank Arena went nuts when Jesper Boqvist (70), signed in the summer to a $775,000 minimum contract, scored 89 seconds into the final period. That unleashed the dogs of war: The Panthers scored five goals in nine minutes — Boqvist at 1:29, Niko Mikkola at 6:26, Aleksander Barkov at 6:55 and 9:31, and Brad Marchand at 10:37. Boqvist assisted on two of those goals. Only four teams had rallied from a 3-0 hole: the 1942 Maple Leafs, 1975 Islanders, 2010 Flyers and 2014 Kings. Carolina had lost 15 straight games in the conference finals. S AM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES 92 • RUN IT BACK!

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

MAY 26, 2025 L 3-1

HURRICANES 3, PANTHERS 0 GAME 4 SUNRISE

For the second straight series, the Panthers missed a shot to eliminate their opponent at Sunrise. Like Jesper Boqvist pursuing Alexander Nikishin, they were a step behind all night.

The Hurricanes, truly playing for their playoff lives, took their first lead of the series when Logan Stankoven made it 1-0 midway through the second period. Their goalie, Federik Andersen, was pulled in Game 2 and benched for Game 3 after surrendering nine goals on 36 shots — a .750 save percentage. But Andersen stopped all 20 Florida shots for his second shutout of the playoffs. And in the third period, Sebastian Aho at 17:49 and Jordan Staal at 18:15 scored empty-netters. SAM NAVVARO / IMAGN IMAGES THE PLAYOFFS • 93

Dmitry Kulikov

Evan Rodrigues Nico Sturm

Seth Jones

Aleksander Barkov

Tomas 132Nosek • RUN IT BACK!

A.J. Greer

Brad Marchand

Sam Bennett

Anton Lundell

Mackie Samoskevich

Carter Verhaeghe

Eetu Luostarinen

Jonah Gadjovich

Jesper Boqvist

THIS SPREAD: Panthers hoisted the

Stanley Cup on June 17, 2025.

S AM NAVARRO / IMAGN IMAGES

Sam Reinhart

Nate Schmidt

Sergei Bobrovsky Uvis Balinskis

Matthew Tkachuk

THE GLORY • 133