10 Facts About The Florida Panthers Of The NHL

The Florida Panthers have now spent over 20 years in the NHL. The team, who plays their home games out of the BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida, has managed to survive in Southern Florida, a region not known for producing hockey players or hockey fans.

Here are ten things you may or may not know about the Florida Panthers:

1. Before starting the 2013-14 season with the Detroit Red Wings, Stephen Weiss established himself as Florida’s all-time leader in assists. Weiss totalled 249 assists with the Panthers between 2001-02 and 2012-13, 18 more than Olli Jokinen. Until his signing with Detroit, Florida was the only NHL team Stephen had played for.

2. The Florida Panthers have not won a playoff series since reaching the Stanley Cup finals in 1995-96 against the Colorado Avalanche. They were swept in that series. Since, the Panthers have lost in the opening round in 1996-97 to the New York Rangers, to the Boston Bruins in 1997-98, the New Jersey Devils in 1999-00 and the Devils again in 2011-12.

3. Florida made it to the Stanley Cup finals in just their third year of existence. The Panthers met the Colorado Avalanche in the finals but were swept in four games. The three victorious rounds en route to the finals stand as the only three playoff matchups the Panthers have won in their relatively brief existence.

4. Goaltender Craig Anderson held the record for the most shots faced in a shutout victory. In a Florida Panthers uniform, Anderson shutout the New York Islanders 1-0 on March 2, 2008 while facing 53 shots. However, on April 3, 2012, Mike Smith of the Phoenix Coyotes stopped 54 shots in a 2-0 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets.

5. In an odd twist, Florida’s individual single season record for most goals is higher than the team’s record for most assists. Pavel Bure holds the record for most goals in a season with 59 in 2000-01. Viktor Kozlov holds the Panthers record for most assists in a single season with 53 in 1999-00.

6. For a long time, the only player from the Panthers to win a major NHL individual award is Pavel Bure. Pavel won the Maurice ‘Rocket’ Richard Trophy as the NHL player with the most goals twice. In 1999-00, he led the league with 58 goals and the following season he added one to lead with 59. It was just the second and third years that the trophy was awarded. Since, Brian Campbell won the Lady Byng Trophy in 2011-12 and Jonathan Huberdeau won the Calder Trophy in 2012-13.

7. Florida joined the National Hockey League for the 1993-94 season. The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim joined that same season. Unlike the typical NHL expansion team, the Panthers finished ninth in the Eastern Conference, just one point behind the New York Islanders for the final playoff spot. The Mighty Ducks did nearly as well, finishing ninth in the Western Conference, 11 points behind the eighth place San Jose Sharks.

8. Ed Jovanovski has been Florida’s only first overall pick at the NHL Entry Draft. The Panthers took Jovanovski in the 1994 draft after his first year with the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League. He returned to play one more year of junior in the OHL before joining the Panthers. Ed played just three and a half seasons with Florida before being traded to the Vancouver Canucks. 2011-12 marks Jovanovski’s return to Florida after spending the past five seasons with the Phoenix Coyotes.

9. The Florida Panthers began play in the Miami Arena. The rink was built in 1988 and had a seating capacity of just 14,703 for hockey. For the 1998-99 season, the Panthers moved to the brand new Bank Atlantic Centre which holds 17,040. The Arena is now called the BB&T Centre. The Miami Arena was demolished in 2008 after just 20 years of existence.

10. Two members of the 2011 Hockey Hall of Fame induction class finished off their National Hockey Careers with the Florida Panthers. Goaltender Ed Belfour played in Florida for just one season, 2006-07. Joe Nieuwendyk played the 2005-06 season and a handful of games in 2006-07 before retiring.

Norfolk Admirals Individual Single Season Records

The Norfolk Admirals came into the American Hockey League for the 2000-01 season as an expansion franchise. Originally, the Admirals were affiliated with the Chicago Blackhawks but have been the farm team of the Tampa Bay Lightning since the 2007-08 season.

In their relatively short history, Norfolk players have put up decent individual stats. The individual single season records for the team are respectable and were set by a handful of players that are familiar to hockey fans.
The Admirals individual records for most goals, assists and points in a season were all set in 2006-07. Besides this past 2011-12 season, it was their most successful regular season in history with 50 wins and 108 points. Unfortunately, they lost in the first round of the Calder Cup playoffs to the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins.

Troy Brouwer – 41 Goals

Troy Brouwer set the team mark for goals with 41, finishing third in the AHL for that category. It was Troy’s only season with Norfolk before becoming a regular in the National Hockey League. Since, Troy has played over 300 games in the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks and Washington Capitals.

Martin St. Pierre – 72 Assists and 99 Points

Martin St. Pierre set the mark for both assists and points with 72 and 99. For each, he was second in the AHL that season, narrowly missing out in the race for the John B. Sollenberger Trophy. 2006-07 was St. Pierre’s first of two seasons with the Admirals. He was undrafted after a great junior career with the Guelph Storm of the Ontario Hockey League but has managed to play 38 games in the league thus far with the Blackhawks, Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators. Marty spent 2011-12 with the AHL’s Springfield Falcons.

Zack Stortini – 299 PIM

Zack Stortini broke Mike Brown’s record for PIM with 299 in 2013-14. Now three seasons removed from what was a regular job in the National Hockey League, Stortini wore the ‘A’ for Norfolk in 2013-14. He played 73 regular season games and added nine points.
Zack was a third round pick by the Edmonton Oilers in 2003 after his second of four seasons in the Ontario Hockey League with the Sudbury Wolves. Of those four years, Stortini was team captain for the final three. Zack played 257 games in the NHL with the Oilers, and Nashville Predators. His last NHL game was with the Predators in 2011-12, his only game with the team.
Brown set the previous team record for most penalty minutes in a single season with 286 in 2004-05. Brown was in his first of two seasons with the Admirals and at the tail end of his pro career. 2005-06 would be his last season before hanging up the blades. Mike was originally a first round pick of the Florida Panthers in 1997. He never played for Florida but did appear in 34 NHL games between 2000-01 and 2005-06 with the Vancouver Canucks, Anaheim Mighty Ducks and Chicago.

Goaltending Records

Norfolk’s major individual single season goaltending records belong to two netminders that now play prominent roles in the NHL. Corey Crawford and Craig Anderson used the Admirals as a stepping stone to National Hockey League careers.
Crawford has the Admirals record for most wins in a single season with 38 in 2006-07. Corey was a second round pick of the Blackhawks in 2003 and has become the team’s number one goalie over the past two seasons.
Anderson set team marks for lowest goals against average and highest save percentage in 2002-03. Playing in 32 games, he recorded a 1.94 GAA and a .923 save percentage for Norfolk. He also spent time with the Blackhawks that season, appearing in six NHL games. Craig was a third round pick of the Blackhawks in 2001 and has since had stints with Chicago, Florida Panthers, Colorado Avalanche and Ottawa.