The Florida Panthers did something very ‘cool’ with their championship ice. When members of the media arrived at Amerant Bank Arena for exit interviews on Saturday, some who wandered into the inner-bowl found an unusual site. The ice was all chopped up, hacked into thousands of pieces in preparation to be bulldozed out of the building. It’s the normal protocol for the end of any season, so it didn’t strike anyone as anything other than that. A day later, the Panthers held their Stanley Cup Championship parade along A1A in Fort Lauderdale. Weather-wise, it was a perfect late-June day as the sunshine soaked the hundreds of thousands of fans who lined the streets to celebrate with the Panthers. As the team made their way south on A1A toward the rally stage set up across from Fort Lauderdale Beach Park, Panthers players were all outfitted with water guns to spray fans with refreshing water as temperatures reached into the 90s. But it wasn’t just any water that was being sprayed out of those squirt guns. It was melted championship ice, straight from Sunrise. That’s right, the same ice that the Panthers skated on when they won the Stanley Cup last week was melted down and sprayed on fans celebrating the championship. This is just the latest way that the Panthers have found a way to connect with their fans as the team has made sure to take the Stanley Cup with them across Miami-Dade and Broward counties, out in public, to share the joy with everyone in South Florida. They did the same thing last year, and odds are they’ll do it again if they can win another Stanley Cup in the coming years. Seeing the bond that has formed between the Panthers players and their fans over the past few years has been something extremely special and unique. Enjoy this, Cats fans, as these kind of situations are incredibly rare. LATEST STORIES FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS - FLORIDA Latest on Panthers pending free agents, ripple effect from Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand, Aaron Ekblad [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/latest-on-panthers-pending-free-agents-ripple-effect-from-sam-bennett-brad-marchand-aaron-ekblad] Florida Panthers release full 2025 preseason schedule [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/florida-panthers-release-full-2025-preseason-schedule] Panthers bring Stanley Cup to see Messi at Club World Cup match [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/panthers-bring-stanley-cup-to-see-messi-at-club-world-cup-match] Sasha Barkov explains why Panthers leadership wanted first-time winners to hoist Stanley Cup before anyone else [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/sasha-barkov-explains-why-panthers-leadership-wanted-first-time-winners-to-hoist-stanley-cup-before-anyone-else] Panthers Struck Gold Signing Veteran Defenseman [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/panthers-struck-gold-signing-veteran-defender] Photo caption: Jun 22, 2025; Fort Lauderdale, Florida, UNITED STATES; Florida Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola (77) celebrates during the Stanley Cup championship parade and rally. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)
