NHL

After months of planning to maintain the ice in the Florida sun, the NHL and Mother Nature offer an ideal wintry mix at Raymond James Stadium for this year's Stadium Series game.

On "Florida Matters Live & Local," meteorologist Megan Borowski of the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network discussed our cold snap and what that means for those heading to Gasparilla and the Stadium Series game at Raymond James Stadium.

There is a major detail that changes the league's approach ahead of the construction of the rink: Raymond James Stadium is a fully outdoor stadium exposed to Florida's temperature and humidity.

The NHL is hosting its first outdoor game in Florida on Friday. The Florida Panthers will face the New York Rangers at loanDepot Park, home of the Miami Marlins.

The NHL has hosted 43 outdoor games, but none have been as ambitious as Friday's matchup at loanDepot Park and again on Feb. 1 at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium.

The Bolts open at home — the renamed Benchmark International Arena — against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday night with a goal to get past the first round of the playoffs and back-to-back Cup winner Florida.

The Florida Panthers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 7-0 in the preseason finale for both teams. The game featured 65 penalties totaling 312 minutes.

Benchmark International, a global mergers-and-acquisitions firm based in Tampa, signed a multiyear naming rights agreement with Vinik Sports Group, the owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Florida Panthers defeated the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 to become the NHL’s first back-to-back champs since Tampa Bay in 2020 and ’21 and the third team to do it this century.

The financial edge is just one advantage teams like the Panthers and Lightning have in attracting and retaining players. Everything from the weather to strong ownership and talented front offices factors in.

For the sixth straight season, the Eastern Conference's path to the final runs through the Sunshine State. The Panthers eliminated Carolina in five games and next go for a title repeat in a rematch with Edmonton.

Doug Cifu got into an exchange with a Toronto fan who compared hits by Panthers players to the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Cifu later referred to the fan as a "51st state anti semite loser."