It wasn’t the end result that the Panthers wanted, but it was still a memorable night. The first outdoor game to be played in the state of Florida is every bit a Winter Classic game as any of the ones hosted farther north. The retractable roof was open, the windows were open, and there was even fake snow raining down at puck drop. Despite massive criticism online of the event being hosted in Florida, it was sold out, and there was a ton of hype around it in Miami. The Panthers had everyone involved, including the injured players. Despite the loss, there was still a generally positive sentiment about the event from the players and coaching staff. 

Spectacle:

There was no shortage of things to do or look at at LoanDepot Park, from the fan fest to all the details in the sand meets snow set up around the rink. There were shooting challenges, faceoff challenges, meet and greets, and the Stanley Cup made an appearance. Once you get inside, the rink theming is as you’d expect for an event in Miami. There were lots of neon, pink and blue coloring, and set-ups for both roller hockey with fake ice for normal hockey. There were pyrotechnics for player intros, fireworks for the national anthem, and over 36,000 fans in attendance for a sold-out crowd. Whatever the hockey purists say, the sport is growing rapidly in a non-traditional market, and it was nice of the league to reward the Panthers with such an event while giving their fans an unforgettable experience. There was a lot of criticism online about the roof being closed while the ice was being built. It was like people forgot what retractable roofs are, and it was stated multiple times during the process that the roof would be open for the game, and it was. It’s ironic that people were complaining about it this year when Seattle did the same thing two years ago when they hosted. Winter doesn’t look exactly the same in every climate. Just because it doesn’t snow in Florida doesn’t make Friday’s game any less of a Winter Classic, just a different kind of winter. 

2026 NHL Winter Classic

2026 NHL Winter Classic

2026 NHL Winter Classic

Everyone’s Involved:

The Panthers made sure all of their players were involved in the event, including the injured ones. Barkov, Tkachuk, Kulikov, Gadjovich, Nosek, Gregor, and Schwindt all got to don the Winter Classic Jerseys and beanies for the team photo. Barkov was doing some light skating with a knee brace on while Tkachuk, Schwindt, and Gregor wore the yellow non-contact jerseys for the team practice. And of course, everyone took part in the family skate, which produced some very wholesome content for social media. One of my favorite details was that Florida had their Panthers on the Prowl charity panthers set up at the fan fest. Bill Zito said that they’re close to hitting their one-million-dollar mark for the charity. The Cats showed up to the Winter Classic in style, with Bill Zito working with Ferrari to provide the team with arrival cars. The team was decked out in Miami Vice themed clothing, and a couple of players even added plastic brick phones to the look, while Tkachuk and Barkov stepped out of their Ferrari smoking cigars. We can overlook that they seemed to have gotten stuck in Miami traffic and were 10-15 minutes late to their own arrival time. The injured players were given their own seats right next to the bench so they still got to be involved there. As this team is serious only about 50% of the time, there was a funny video of Kulikov holding a phone up to the glass during warmups, asking for a puck from one of his teammates. 

2026 NHL Winter Classic

2026 NHL Winter Classic

2026 NHL Winter Classic

Positivity Through Hardship:

The injury bug made another appearance this season for Florida; this time, it hit Seth Jones. Jones took a puck to the clavicle area and had to leave the game early in the first period; he did not return. Between that and losing the match 1-5, those were the lowest points of the night. Zibanejad put up the first hat trick in Winter Classic History, Panarin scored the other two goals for the Rangers, and Sam Reinhart scored the only goal for the Panthers on the power play. Losing Jones honestly tanked the defense for the rest of the game, and an already struggling power play struggled even more since he quarterbacks the top unit. But, before the match started, all the attending members who were named to Team USA were recognized. Tkachuk draped Seth Jones in an American Flag as they got recognized. Hopefully, his injury isn’t long-term. As of Saturday morning, there’s been no update other than Paul Maurice saying post-game, “Doesn’t look terrible right now.” He also said that Jones would get evaluated on Saturday, so there may be an update before the Colorado game on Sunday. On the night itself, Maurice said, “The story really is the show that went on here today, the spectacle of it. It’s not the X’s and O’s. This was brilliant, just brilliant.” Luostarinen said, “There was a lot of energy in the building. Just a pity we didn’t do better tonight for them.” And Reinhart said, “The league does a phenomenal job – year in, year out. You never know if you’re going to get an opportunity to do it once, so you never know if you’re going to be back again. It’s just disappointing we didn’t give [fans] a better result.” Overall, the Winter Classic was a success in South Florida, even if the Panthers didn’t get the win. Fans will have memories that’ll last a lifetime. 

2026 NHL Winter Classic

2026 NHL Winter Classic

2026 NHL Winter Classic

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