The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as part of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. Originally playing at Miami Arena, the team moved to the Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida in 1998. They are the southernmost NHL team and one of two in Florida, with a notable rivalry against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
From 1996 to 2024, the Panthers’ local games were broadcast on Bally Sports Florida (formerly SportsChannel and Fox Sports Florida). In 2024, they signed a new broadcast deal with Scripps Sports. The Panthers are affiliated with two minor league teams: the Charlotte Checkers (AHL) and the Savannah Ghost Pirates (ECHL).
The Panthers joined the NHL in the 1993–94 season and set a record for the most points by a new team in its first season—a record later broken by the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017–18. In 1996, they made their first Stanley Cup Finals appearance but lost to the Colorado Avalanche. From 1996 to 2020, the team made the playoffs only five times and didn’t win a single playoff series during that period.
Things turned around starting in the 2020–21 season. The Panthers broke their playoff drought in 2022, winning their first series in over 20 years. They then reached the Stanley Cup Finals three years in a row (2023–2025). Their efforts paid off in 2024, when they won their first Stanley Cup by defeating the Edmonton Oilers in a thrilling seven-game series.
The Panthers’ recent success has marked a new era for the team and energized their fanbase across South Florida and beyond.