Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Anthony Stolarz, and Steven Lorentz were presented with their championship rings ahead of their first matchup against their former team.

The Toronto Maple Leafs may have suffered a 5-1 loss to the Florida Panthers on Wednesday night, but the game marked a memorable occasion for three of their players.

Before the puck dropped on the first game of Toronto’s two-game road trip, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Anthony Stolarz, and Steven Lorentz were presented with their Stanley Cup rings on Wednesday morning, celebrating their championship with the Panthers last season.

Given the occasion, members of the Maple Leafs summed up the mood when asked about taking a moment to look at the rings.

“It's a good quick peek. I didn't want to look too long, but obviously, it was pretty spectacular,” John Tavares said.

Defenseman Morgan Rielly, too, couldn’t resist sneaking a look. “I took a quick glance, not bad,” he admitted, before adding, “Yeah, kind of (want one).”

Mitch Marner was candid on the accomplishment, saying, “Yeah, I got to look. Great job by them. It's special. I mean, like I spoke to you guys about the other day, it's a special thing for them. We knew it was going to be a special night for those three."

During the game, the Panthers organization put together three separate tribute videos for the now-Maple Leafs, playing subsequently during TV timeouts. Each player was honored for their role in bringing a Stanley Cup to Florida.

Although the Leafs couldn’t deliver a win to cap off the night, the ceremony underscored the gratitude for what Ekman-Larsson, Stolarz, and Lorentz achieved with the Panthers in their tenures. Regardless, it’s “something that you’ll remember for the rest of your life,” said Stolarz post-game.

“Yeah, it's really neat, cool to be a part of, but obviously the result wasn’t what we wanted, so it kind of put a little dampening on that,” said Lorentz.

“Not the result we wanted for them. But it's pretty classy what they did,” said Marner, referring to the video tributes. 

It goes without saying that winning a Stanley Cup is the ultimate dream for any NHL player. For Tavares, Rielly, Marner, and the Maple Leafs, they hope to experience a ring ceremony of their own after getting a glimpse of their teammates’ glory on Wednesday.

Sitting atop the Atlantic Division with a strong 13-7-2 record and an impressive 7-2-1 stretch over their last 10 games, the Leafs are showing promise. However, plenty of work lies ahead before the club attempts to go on a run in the postseason.