Panthers unveil special logo for 30th anniversary season

The Panthers will host special themed nights and events throughout the season to mark the occasion

The upcoming hockey season will be a milestone year for the Florida Panthers.

It will mark the franchise's 30th anniversary season in the National Hockey League.

Those of you who have been around since the beginning can take a moment and let the memories of those three decades wash over you like a wave hitting the sandy beaches of Fort Lauderdale.

There have been some great times and some not so great times, but lately things have really appeared to turn a corner, making the idea of celebrating the team's history that much more pleasant of an experience.

On Tuesday, the team began to unveil some of the fanfare that will coincide with the special season in the form of the Panthers 30th Anniversary logo.

It features the modern take on the classic leaping cat holding a broken stick logo.

One of the cool elements is three red stripes on the stick to symbolize both three decades of Panthers hockey and the three retired jersey numbers for Roberto Luongo, Bill Torrey and Wayne Huizenga.

An infographic with more about the logo and its parts can be seen below.

The team also announced three theme nights to honor every decade of Panthers hockey, and no, they will not be playing with the lights off for the game that marks the 'dark decade' of the 2000s.

The 1990's night will be on Jan. 11 when Florida hosts the Los Angeles Kings, 2000s night will be celebrated on March 7 against the Philadelphia Flyers and everything from 2010 until now will be recognized on March 28 when the New York Islanders visit FLA Live Arena.

For fans looking to get a head start on the festivities, there is already special 30-year swag and goodies on sale at FLATeamShop.com, and you can bet there will be more special nights, events and gear for the Panthers 30th Anniversary season as we get closer to Opening Night. 

The team also put out a cool video on Twitter to coincide with the debut of the new logo. Check it out below.