Stanley Cup, Panthers captain made their first appearance at the Elbo Room
Florida Panthers fans are still riding the high of Tuesday night's Stanley Cup Championship win. In true South Florida fashion, dozens flocked to the iconic Elbo Room bar on Fort Lauderdale Beach to celebrate and catch a glimpse of the Cup itself.
The Panthers clinched their second consecutive championship with a dominant 5-1 win over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena.
By early morning hours, the Cup had already made its way to the bar.
Before the sun peeked over the horizon, the Stanley Cup arrived in Fort Lauderdale Beach. It came, as all priceless things do, in a black SUV, pulling up outside the Elbo Room.
A window rolls down. A man sticks his head out and asks a sparse crowd, somewhat bleary but determined, 'Hey...do you know Sasha Barkov?'
The answer, of course, was yes. Yes, we know our captain, our leader, the first European captain to hoist the Cup in consecutive years — Aleksander 'Sasha' Barkov.
The SUV pulled over on AIA and Barkov got out and did what every hockey player dreams of doing from the first minute he laces up. He hoisted the Stanley Cup in the air, fans screaming and palm trees swaying in the background
The fans, many of whom arrived before 4 a.m., screamed their appreciation and waved their phones, scrambling for a look. 'Is it going in the ocean?' Someone yelled
Barkov, back in the car, said no and drove away.
The diehard fans who had gathered outside the Elbo Room in hopes of seeing the Stanley Cup, which the Florida Panthers won Tuesday night for the second straight year, had been there for hours. Some were weaving and drinking Heinekens. A jar of clear liquid, almost certainly flammable, was passed around. And as others arrived, hoping for another Cup sighting, those who saw Barkov passed the story down. A five-minute traffic stop already taking on the aura of legend.
READ MORE: Why the Panthers made sure first-time Cup winners got to celebrate first
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
‘We need to win the league': Levy sets sights high for new Spurs era under Frank
Daniel Levy has made clear his desire to win the Premier League and Champions League as he prepared to usher in a new era at Tottenham with the managerial hire of Thomas Frank. In a rare public address, the longstanding chair opened up on the 'emotionally difficult' decision to sack Ange Postecoglou, who ended the club's 17-year trophy drought with the Europa League triumph against Manchester United but flatlined in the league. Advertisement Related: Hugo Lloris surprised Spurs sacked Postecoglou after 'amazing achievement' Levy admitted he went through agonies when the seven additional minutes were signalled in the final in Bilbao on 21 May, with Spurs holding a 1-0 lead. When they closed out the victory, it was the trigger for overwhelming happiness, although Levy said it had to be the foundation for further glories. 'We've won a European trophy but it's not enough,' he said. 'It's what we haven't done that's more important. We need to win the league. We want to win the Premier League. We want to win the Champions League. We want to win. I have very broad shoulders. Failure is not an option. The desire is to succeed. And because it's so difficult I want to succeed even more.' 'The pressure and the disappointment of not winning over a number of years … I just wanted it so desperately. Not just for me and my family but all the fans around the world. We deserved some luck. That last seven or so minutes was horrific. It felt like hours. So when that final whistle went that was just an amazing experience.' Advertisement Levy spoke in a video uploaded to the club's website alongside the new chief executive, Vinai Venkatesham, who has come in, as he put it, to take 'more of a lead day-to-day on operational matters on and off the pitch'. Spurs are set to confirm the sacking of the chief football officer, Scott Munn. Venkatesham has joined after spending 14 years at Arsenal in a variety of roles – mainly commercial. Levy said: 'We're very proud of our stadium but we need to make sure we win on the pitch. There's no point having a wonderful stadium if you haven't got a wonderful team and aren't winning. The reason we do all these other events [at the stadium] is to provide additional financial resources to the club which, in turn, go back into the team. Everything is about the team. Everything.' Venkatesham said Spurs had analysed 'more than 30 candidates' to succeed Postecoglou before spending a lot of time on a shortlist. Frank was 'absolutely the No 1' choice of the board. Venkatesham said: 'One of the things I'm really excited about is that he is an outstanding developer of young players so I really look forward to seeing what he can do with the squad we have here.' On Postecoglou, Levy said: 'I'm very grateful to Ange. I don't regret appointing Ange. We were over the moon to win a trophy. But we need to compete in all competitions. I've got an excellent relationship with him. I told him that he's always going to be part of our history. Himself and his family are always welcome back. It was a collective decision [to sack him]. Emotionally it was difficult but we believe we've made the right decision for the club.' Advertisement Meanwhile, Tottenham remain in regular contact with their winger Manor Solomon over his welfare after he was left stranded in Israel as the military conflict with Iran continues. The 25-year-old Israel international got married to his long-term partner, Dana Voshina, last week but they have not been able to leave after Israeli airspace was closed to civilian flights. A Tottenham spokesperson said: 'We are constantly in regular dialogue with all our players regarding their wellbeing and welfare.' Solomon is due to return to the north London club for the start of pre-season training in early July.
CNBC
17 minutes ago
- CNBC
Canada's Stanley Cup dry spell stretches to 32 years as Edmonton flops in Finals
The Florida Panthers extended Canada's agonizing Stanley Cup drought to 32 years with a 5-1 win over Edmonton in Game Six on Tuesday, a second straight Finals defeat for the Oilers which left their fans devastated and players searching for answers. It was the eighth time a Canadian team reached the Finals but fell short since the Montreal Canadiens won the NHL championship in 1993. It was also the second Finals in a row that the Panthers beat the Oilers, who became the first team to lose back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals since the Boston Bruins in 1977-1978. Oilers captain Connor McDavid, arguably the best player in the league, said his team had given everything in the best-of-seven series. "Nobody quit, nobody threw the towel in," he added. "They're a heck of a team. They're Stanley Cup champions back-to-back for a reason. "Never really able to generate any momentum up the ice. We kept trying the same thing over and over again, banging our heads against the wall," he told reporters. "Still a lot of confidence and belief. I don't think people thought we were going to make it this far - we obviously believed. Came up just short again," added McDavid, who last year won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs. From "the Great One" Wayne Gretzky to Mark "the Moose" Messier and "Mr. Hockey" himself, Gordie Howe, the proud sons of the Great White North have created ice hockey lore to last generations. The Canadian men's and women's teams have won 14 Olympic gold medals between them, yet the country's NHL sides continually fail to get their hands on the trophy. The Oilers had home advantage in the series despite an injury-plagued season but that mattered little to the Panthers, who won seven of their last eight games on the road. Goaltender Stuart Skinner, who got the nod over Calvin Pickard for Game Six, said the Oilers had to find out what went wrong. "We need to learn from this right away, right now. Letting it happen two times in a row is devastating," he said. Prime Minister Mark Carney struck an optimistic tone on social media, as he rallied his compatriots to keep faith. "Proud of the Oilers' grit. Proud of the guys for getting us to this moment. Heads high," Carney wrote. "Next year."
Yahoo
17 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Stuart Skinner to start Game 6 of Stanley Cup final with Oilers facing elimination
FORT LAUDERDALE — Stuart Skinner is getting the call with his team's season on the line. The Oilers goaltender will start Tuesday in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup final against the Florida Panthers with Edmonton facing elimination in the NHL's title series. Advertisement "Definitely know that I have the confidence of my teammates and the coaching staff," Skinner said after the morning skate. "There's obviously a lot of belief." Skinner was pulled in Game 4 after allowing three goals on 17 shots in the first period. Calvin Pickard took over and made 22 saves the rest of the in the Oilers' 5-4 overtime victory. The veteran journeyman got the net in Game 5, surrendering four goals on 18 shots in Florida's 5-2 win that moved the Panthers within one victory of the team's second straight Cup win after topping Edmonton in seven last June. "It might sound weird … I felt like I played well," Skinner said of Game 4. "But sometimes that happens. It's just life. Especially as a goalie, it can be hard sometimes." Advertisement The Edmonton product is 7-3 in these playoffs with an .891 save percentage and 2.99 goals-against average. The Oilers are set to make two other lineup changes, with winger Kasperi Kapanen coming in for Viktor Arvidsson and John Klingberg suiting up in place of Troy Stecher on defence. Game 7, if necessary, would be Friday in Edmonton. Kapanen, who sat out Game 5, has three goals and three assists for six points in 11 contests this post-season. "Can get in on the forecheck, can make a play," Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said. "When he's dialled in, he's a really good hockey player." Advertisement Klingberg re-enters the fray after sitting out Games 4 and 5. The blueliner has one goal and three assists in 18 playoff contests as part of Edmonton's run to the final Knoblauch added that he expects forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who missed Monday's practice and Tuesday's on-ice session with an undisclosed injury, to play in Game 6. Skinner, meanwhile, was also benched in the first round with Edmonton down 2-0 to the Los Angeles Kings. Pickard took over and won six straight starts before getting hurt in Game 2 of the second round against the Vegas Golden Knights, which opened the door for Skinner. "He's done it for numerous years in a row now," Oilers centre Leon Draisaitl said of Skinner. "We went to Game 7 in the Stanley Cup final last year. He was amazing in the playoffs. He's had incredible games this year. There's just a trust factor that we know that he can get the job done for us. Advertisement "He was amazing in the first period (of Game 4) … it was us that let him down. We have full belief in him." Oilers forward Adam Henrique has been impressed with Skinner's mental makeup and ability to bounce back. "That's a pressure-packed position," he said. "We've talked a lot about the emotions through the season and playoffs and how much of a roller-coaster it can be. And in that position, even more. He always seems to just be calm, cool, collected." Skinner backstopped Edmonton to series victories over the Vegas Golden Knights and Dallas Stars to help the Oilers reach their second straight final. Advertisement "Stu's been in a lot of high-pressure games," Knoblauch said. "You look at the amount of elimination games he's played in — I think there were six last year — and every single game he played in were really solid, if not spectacular, performances. "When the season's on the line, we have a lot of confidence in him." This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 17, 2025. Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press
