The Florida Panthers' Championship Parade Was Absolute Cinema

In case you've been living under a rock for the past five days, the Florida Panthers won the Stanley Cup on Tuesday.

And they've spent literally every waking moment reminding their fans, rival teams, and the NHL at large that they not only know how to win, but how to party as well.

The culmination of this nearly-week-long bender took place Sunday afternoon on Fort Lauderdale Beach, as the Panthers held their championship parade before a sea of crazed and alcohol-fueled fans.

The vibes were immaculate, as the kids say, and luckily there were plenty of clips and pictures to come out of this celebratory coronation.

I spent a good bit of effort earlier this week dispelling the myth that no one cares about hockey in South Florida, but I think these pictures are all anyone needs to see to shut that narrative down.

It's 95 degrees in Fort Lauderdale and yet, these fans have descended upon this small strip of land near the Atlantic Ocean to celebrate their champions like any good hockey town should.

Defenseman Nate Schmidt had a hell of a playoff run, totaling 12 points in 23 games and showing that he can be a dual-threat both in the defensive and offensive zones as well.

It looks like Schmidt can multitask off the ice as well, as the 33-year-old held a baby in one arm and shotgunned a beer with the other while strolling down A1A.

This guy can babysit my kid anytime!

This one requires a little bit of backstory.

The Empty Netters podcast got an anonymous tip before Game 5 in Edmonton, with the series tied at two games apiece, that the Oilers had put in a reservation at a popular sushi restaurant in Fort Lauderdale for the night after Game 6, assuming that they would win both Game 5 and the series clincher in South Florida.

Well, someone alerted the Panthers to this as well (neither of the Empty Netters hosts have admitted to it), and after the Cats won both Games 5 and 6, they decided to have the sushi restaurant in question cater their parade earlier Sunday.

That's some diabolical trolling right there.

Sam Bennett has been public enemy No. 1 in the NHL for the past two postseasons for his aggressive style of play.

His ability to play over the line at times is emblematic of the Panthers' play in general, so plenty of folks were none too happy to see them not only hoist the Cup, but celebrate with such bravado.

The Conn Smythe winner had a few choice words for anyone who took umbrage with the Cats for their play or their partying, channeling his inner Conor McGregor.

If you know anything about Florida head coach Paul Maurice, it's that he's a brilliant hockey mind, and he can be a little eccentric at times.

File this one under the latter, as Maurice had his daughter make him some shirts featuring his two pet cats.

Maurice wore a shirt to last year's parade with his cats' visages on the front and back, so it's only fitting that he stepped his game up for their second straight Cup celebration.

The "rivalry" between Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad and five-time major championship-winning golfer (and diehard Panthers fan) Brooks Koepka has been well documented.

In 2023, as the Panthers were on a bit of a losing streak, Koepka could be seen from his luxury box at Amerant Bank Arena wielding a parking cone, a pejorative for a bad defenseman, and pointing toward Ekblad.

All the Panthers have done since then is win the Eastern Conference three times and capture the last two Stanley Cups.

Ekblad and Koepka have made up since the incident, but that hasn't stopped the former from ribbing the latter about his choice words from a few seasons ago.

Last year, Ekblad wore an orange traffic cone on his head and started a "f**k you, Brooks Koepka" chant, and it seems he's made a tradition out of it again this year.

All in good fun, I'm sure.

The Florida Panthers are back-to-back Stanley Cup champions, and are partying like it as well.

And it doesn't look like this run will be slowing down anytime this summer.