
Florida Panthers players show off Stanley Cup at Coldplay concert
On Sunday in South Florida, one such of those situations played out in a very public way.
Last weekend, globally popular band Coldplay brought their Music of the Spheres World Tour to Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.
Much of the attention surrounding the band and their tour has come from the viral video showing the married CEO of Astronomer and one of his employees in a romantic brace during a 'kiss cam' segment at a concert in Massachusetts earlier this month.
There was no such drama at either of this weekend's shows in South Florida.
Instead, it was a couple of fun surprise guest appearances that had concertgoers excited at what they saw on Sunday.
Several members of the Florida Panthers were in attendance on Sunday, and they brought a special friend: the Stanley Cup.
At one point during the show, a group of Panthers that included Aaron Ekblad, Seth Jones, Gus Forsling were put on the giant video monitors inside the stadium.
Coldplay frontman Chris Martin even made a joke during segment, as Ekblad was drinking something from the Cup while it was behind held by Jones.
'Okay, please don't drive home,' Martin joked before starting to sing a Panthers-themed song.
'Well hello, the beautiful Panthers. I hope that you're all feeling really nice. I've got a question for you, please can you tell me true, where in Miami, on Earth, do you keep ice?'
During the song, Ekblad was seen showing off Forsling's shaped abs while the latter lifted the Cup above his head.
Also spotted inside the suite were Panthers General Manager Bill Zito and VP of Player Engagement Mike Huff.
The Panthers weren't the only ones to get a giant cheer from the crowd, as international soccer superstar Lionel Messi was also in the house.
Messi, who plays for Inter Miami CF, gave fans a smile and wave when he and his wife were shown on the monitors.
It was a relatively quick visit to South Florida for the Cup, which was also in the Keys with Zito over the weekend.
It will be flying back to Canada on Monday where it will join Panthers forward Jonah Gadjovich for his special day with the historic trophy on Tuesday in his hometown of Whitby, Ontario.
LATEST STORIES FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS - FLORIDA
Former Panther Forward Retires From Professional Hockey After Long European Career
Sergei Bobrovsky has earned his spot among Panthers all-time greats, but will team retire his number someday?
Panthers GM Bill Zito brings Stanley Cup to Florida Keys for fun with dolphins, seals
Pair Of Two-Way Forwards Could Impact The Panthers At Both The NHL And AHL Level
The Hockey Show: Stanley Cup days, offseason activities and ranking fictional coaches
Photo caption: Panthers players have fun with the Stanley Cup during a Coldplay concert at Hard Rock Stadium on July 27, 2025. (@DiceElDani on X)
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


USA Today
27 minutes ago
- USA Today
Eryk Anders vs. Christian Leroy Duncan prediction, pick, start time for UFC on ESPN 71
Eryk Anders and Christian Leroy Duncan meet in the main card opener of UFC on ESPN 72 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom. Last event: 4-2 UFC main cards, 2025: 76-58-1 Eryk Anders vs. Christian Leroy Duncan UFC on ESPN 72 preview Anders (17-8 MMA, 9-8 UFC) will look to extend his current winning streak to three. The 38-year-old middleweight picked up a big win in his last outing in December, where he stopped former champion Chris Weidman in the second round at UFC 310. Prior to that victory, "Ya Boi" won a unanimous decision against Jamie Pickett last March. ... Duncan (11-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) will also aim to keep momentum on his side. After a unanimous decision loss against Gregory Rodrigues at UFC 304 last July, Duncan returned to the win column by going the distance against Andrey Pulyaev in March. Eryk Anders vs. Christian Leroy Duncan UFC on ESPN 72 expert pick, prediction Despite there being many more sensible main-card openers to choose from, the UFC matchmakers and their minimum for featured middleweight fights supersede any format critiques from me. Still, there is a chance that this matchup between Eryk Anders and Christian Leroy Duncan can provide some excitement. Duncan, who has European pundits and fans alike fawning all over his potential, appears to be a well-rounded athlete for the division and can show flashes of dynamism here and there. Anders, on the other hand, is an undeniable athlete who, unfortunately, had the bar of expectation set too high for him due to MMA's weird "great white hope" obsession when it comes to big guys who used to play football. But for as much potential as there is on both sides, it's hard not to see Anders' propensity to push his opposition into the cage, killing the action in this contest. Even though I'm expecting a bit of a slog, I suspect that Duncan will be the more consistently offensive and damaging fighter down the stretch. The pick is Duncan by unanimous decision. Eryk Anders vs. Christian Leroy Duncan UFC on ESPN 72 odds The oddsmakers and the public are heavily favoring the English fighter, listing Duncan -500 and Anders +410 via FanDuel. Eryk Anders vs. Christian Leroy Duncan UFC on ESPN 72 start time, how to watch As the main card opener, Anders and Duncan are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 7:10 p.m. ET. The fight broadcasts live on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.

32 minutes ago
NASCAR driver Shane van Gisbergen aiming for elite company at Watkins Glen International
On the NASCAR tracks with the most circuitous sequence of turns, Shane van Gisbergen has shown a remarkably sublime sense of direction. But the Trackhouse Racing driver still needs help navigating his new life in the United States — such as the recent announcement of a 2026 street race in San Diego. 'I don't even know where that is,' the Auckland, New Zealand, native said with a laugh. 'I had to find it on a map. It'll be cool to go. I've never been there and get to experience all new things.' The Cup Series rookie is an old hand on road courses, which he mastered with 80 victories and three championships from 2007-22 in Supercars (the top racing series in Australia and New Zealand). Those results caught the eye of Trackhouse founder Justin Marks, who took a flier on putting van Gisbergen in a Cup car for the inaugural Chicago Street Race in July 2023. After stunning NASCAR at Chicago as the first driver to win his Cup debut since Johnny Rutherford in 1963, van Gisbergen relocated to NASCAR last year. He has won at Mexico City, Chicago and Sonoma this season, securing a playoff berth for the No. 88 Chevrolet and a multiyear extension at Trackhouse. With a victory Sunday at Watkins Glen International, a 2.45-mile road course in New York, the 36-year-old van Gisbergen would join 2020 champion Chase Elliott and NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon as the only drivers to win four consecutive Cup races on road or street courses. Though van Gisbergen has only 37 career starts in NASCAR's premier series, his four victories already rank third among active drivers on street or road courses. 'These guys have egos, and they are not OK with this,' NASCAR on NBC analyst Steve Letarte said after van Gisbergen's win at Sonoma last month. 'When we go to Watkins Glen, I think it's basically 35 against one, because they'll be like, 'What can we do to bury this guy?'' It starts with getting close enough to rough up van Gisbergen, who has qualified first in his three wins. He won at Mexico City by 16.567 seconds, the Cup Series' largest margin of victory in more than 15 years and the largest gap on a road course in more than 45 years. He faced more pressure at Sonoma on multiple late restarts, but runner-up Chase Briscoe raced him cleanly (and then compared van Gisbergen's road course skills with Michael Jordan in his prime). 'I feel like everyone races really well, and I really love the racing here,' van Gisbergen said. 'I don't feel like anyone targets me on the track and tries to take me out, but I feel like we're the benchmark, which is really awesome. But the best thing on the road course is I've never really raced the same guy. Every week, there's someone different. The spread of talent is quite high here.' Chris Buescher is the only Cup driver to have gotten the best of him. Racing at Watkins Glen last year in a part-time Cup schedule, van Gisbergen missed a corner entry 'by centimeters' and lost to the Roush Fenway Keselowski driver on a last-lap pass. 'I studied it a lot, and that was painful,' van Gisbergen said. 'I'm quite self-analytical, and even when I think of it now, it frustrates me.' He also is a humble perfectionist in addressing his inexperience on oval tracks, which comprise the bulk of the NASCAR schedule. On the advice of 2014 Cup champion Kevin Harvick, van Gisbergen has spent his summer racing Tuesday nights at Charlotte Motor Speedway against preteens in miniature stock cars on a quarter-mile oval. He recently earned his first win on the short track, whose four turns encourage the full-contact racing that largely is absent on road courses. 'I had 12-year-olds bump me and know exactly how to place their car, and I'd never hit anyone on purpose to pass them,' said van Gisbergen, who made his oval debut only two years ago. 'It's a skill that we don't get taught because you're not allowed to do it (in Supercars). So yeah, it's been really beneficial and a lot of fun. It's just more racing and more combat.' He figures to be battle-tested when the Cup playoffs begin in three weeks. The first round is held exclusively at ovals, where van Gisbergen has an average finish of 26.7, but he will start the playoffs with a points cushion because of his wins. He is confident of advancing to the second round simply by avoiding mistakes at tracks located in Darlington, South Carolina, suburban St. Louis and Bristol, Tennessee — while also enjoying their divergent cultures. 'Australia is the same size country, but from one side to the other, there's not much difference in the accents,' van Gisbergen said. 'Here, it's very diverse, and the way people talk is so different. Every part of the country feels like a different country. It's been an awesome experience just trying to learn about it.' According to BetMGM Sportsbook, van Gisbergen (+125) is the favorite, followed by Connor Zilisch (+500), Christopher Bell (+1200) and Kyle Larson (+1200). … With his 63rd start on a road or street course Sunday, Kyle Busch will tie Terry Labonte for most in Cup Series history. Both of Busch's top-five finishes this season have been on a road or street course (fifth at Circuit of The Americas and Chicago). … Three-time and defending series champion Joey Logano will become the 13th Cup driver to make 600 consecutive starts.


NBC Sports
an hour ago
- NBC Sports
Panthers' Tkachuk says he's undecided on whether to have surgery to address last season's injuries
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk said he is still undecided whether to get surgery this offseason to address the significant injuries he suffered in the 4 Nations Face-Off earlier this year. Tkachuk told ESPN in a story posted Friday that while he's hoping to return to the ice soon after playing the Stanley Cup playoffs with a torn adductor muscle and a sports hernia injury, he could miss a couple months if he has surgery. 'If I do get the surgery, it'll definitely be the first two or maybe three months if that's the case,' Tkachuk told the sports network. 'But it's still undecided at this point.' After the Panthers won their second straight Stanley Cup in June, Tkachuk revealed that he had sustained the injuries while playing for Team USA in the 4 Nations Face-Off in February. He missed the final 25 games of the NHL regular season but returned for Game 1 of the Panthers' first-round series against the Tampa Bay Lightning. 'He was a mess,' coach Paul Maurice said in June, adding the team wasn't even sure if Tkachuk would make it through the first round because of the injuries. Tkachuk had 23 points (eight goals, 15 assists) in 23 playoff games, including seven points in the final round against Edmonton. Tkachuk said after the season that he was 50/50 on if he would have surgery. 'I don't know if it'll be a normal summer or not,' he said in June. 'I hope so. ... I have a few weeks here where I can figure it out.' The Panthers begin the regular season at home against the Chicago Blackhawks on Oct 7.