NEWSLETTER
The dream has become a reality in the sunshine state. The Florida Panthers have won the first Stanley Cup championship in the history of the franchise.
The Panthers finished the job on Monday night in a historic Game 7 on their home ice with a win over Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers. With the win, two former high school classmates — Florida’s Matthew Tkachuk and Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics — won their first titles in the same year. Their teachers must be so proud!
SAM REINHART PUTS THE CATS BACK ON TOP 🚨 pic.twitter.com/pQWBxrYSFa
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) June 25, 2024
Panthers Win First Championship
Led by the stellar goaltending of Sergei Bobrovsky and the incredible defense of two-time Selke Trophy winner Sasha Barkov, the Panthers were able to win their first championship against two of the most dynamic offensive players of this generation in McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
I mean… come on
— Tab Bamford (@The1Tab) June 25, 2024
pic.twitter.com/VQoaSZ73nB
Edmonton was hurting throughout the series and found themselves without forward Evander Kane in the finale. They also had defensive issues; Evan Bouchard piled up points at a historic rate as a defenseman, but the Panthers took advantage of mistakes and made them count.
The Panthers’ roster has been build partially thru drafting well, but largely thru bold trades and a little luck. They got defenseman Gustav Forsling, a former Blackhawk, off waivers from Carolina. He emerged as one of the best defensemen in the entire league this year.
The Panthers also acquired their leading point producer this year, Sam Reinhart, in a trade with the Buffalo Sabres. Reinhart scored the Cup-clinching goal. They got Sam Bennett in a trade with Calgary. And they signed Carter Verhaeghe and Evan Rodrigues as free agents.
Florida also pulled off a stunning blockbuster trade to get Tkachuk out of Calgary. The Panthers sent MacKenzie Weegar, Jonathan Huberdeau – who was coming off a 100-point season – Cole Schwindt and a first-round pick in the 2025 draft to the Flames for Tkachuk two years ago. Clearly that deal worked out perfectly for the Panthers; they’ve appeared in the Stanley Cup Final in both years Tkachuk has been with the team, and they won it this year.
