32 NHL Cities in 32 Days: Florida Panthers

Alexis Bazydola
May 13, 2020
4 min read

The Location: Miami, Florida

Opening its doors in 1998 as the National Car Rental Center, BB&T Center is home to the Florida Panthers. Seating just over 19,000 for a hockey game, this $185 million arena was in the works since the Florida Panthers received their expansion bid in 1992. It is currently the largest arena in Florida and the second largest in the southeastern United States. This venue hosted Celine Dion for its inaugural event in 1998 and has hosted other incredible entertainers such as Madonna, Phil Collins, Tina Turner, Beyonce and so many more.

Team History

An expansion franchise was awarded to Wayne Huizenga in December 1992 that would become the Florida Panthers. At the time, he also owned shares in the MLB’s Florida Marlins and NFL’s Miami Dolphins. The team would begin plan at Miami Arena and would share the space with the NBA’s Miami Heat until their new arena was built. In April 1993, the team name of Florida Panthers was announced. This name came from the endangered Florida panther species that found its home in the nearby Everglades region. The team also pledged to help the panther preservation cause financially.

Beginning play during the 1993-94 season, the Panthers were carried by John Vanbiesbrouck, Rob Niedermayer and Scott Mellanby. Florida had one of the best first seasons as an expansion team but narrowly missed the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

In 1995, a new goal celebration emerged. Before the Panthers’ home opener, a rat was found in the locker room who would ultimately be killed by Scott Mellanby after “one-timing” it against the wall. This was nicknamed the rat trick and after fans found out, rubber rats were thrown on the ice in celebration of a goal.

The 1995-96 season also saw the Panthers’ first trip to the playoffs where they faced the Boston Bruins in the first round. They would win the series in five games. They would then best the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins in the second and third rounds, respectfully. They would face the Colorado Avalanche in both franchises’ first Stanley Cup Final appearances. Ultimately, they were swept in four games to the Avalanche.

The next season saw another playoff appearance for the Panthers, but they ultimately lost in the first round to the New York Rangers in five games. After this, the Panthers were in a slump and posted a franchise worst 24-43-15 record in the 1997-98 season.

A new season in 1998 brought a new arena for the Panthers as they moved in to the National Car Rental Center (now BB&T Center). They would again return to the playoffs in 2000, but would be swept in the first round by the New Jersey Devils. The next season (2000-01) would see another slump for the Panthers as they saw an even worse record than in 1997-98. The next few years were dismal for the team while they continue to work towards a competitive edge.

In the summer of 2006, the Panthers traded Robert Luongo, Lukas Krajicek, and a sixth-round draft pick to Vancouver in exchange for Todd Bertuzzi, Alex Auld and Bryan Allen. This trade did not help the Panthers regain momentum. At the 2007 draft, the Panthers received goaltender Tomas Vokoun from the Nashville Predators in exchange for three draft picks. In 2009, the team finished the season with their second-best record ever, but still did not qualify for the playoffs. This would be the eighth straight season the Panthers would not make the postseason.

November 2009 brought new ownership in with Cliff Viner and Stu Siegel as majority owners. Yet again, the Panthers missed the playoffs for a ninth straight season making them the first team to do so in one city. In May 2010, Dale Tallon was brought in as General Manger. In June 2011, Kevin Dineen was named head coach. The 2011-12 season saw many changes in the Panthers lineup and many more injuries. Despite all of this, they were able to capture their first division title as a franchise and would face the New Jersey Devils in the first round of the playoffs, effectively ending their drought. Although they took the series to seven games, they did not move on.

The shortened 2012-13 season was another lackluster year for the team as they fell to the bottom of the league standings. The next year in 2013-14 was much of the same and led to the firing of coach Kevin Dineen to be replaced by Peter Horachek. At the trade deadline, the Panthers were able to reacquire Robert Luongo from Vancouver. Horacheck was let go at the end of the season and replaced with Gerard Gallant. After this season, they were awarded the first selection of the NHL Draft and selected Aaron Ekblad.

The 2014-15 season saw a winning record for the Panthers, but they were unable to capture a playoff spot. The next season saw the Panthers capture their second division title as a franchise and were faced with the New York Islanders in the first round of the playoffs. They lost in six games. The Panthers have not been able to return to the playoffs since this season. Currently at the season’s pause, they sit at 18th in the league with 78 points.

Fanbase & Traditions

With the rubber rat tradition still holding true to this day, the Panthers also have other traditions their fanbase keeps alive. The Panthers have two mascots that pump up fans during the games. Stanley C. Panther was introduced in 1995 and is a panther. Viktor E. Rat was introduced in 2014 to symbolize the Cup run of 1996 where the tradition of throwing fake rats on the ice began.