The Florida Panthers will raise their Stanley Cup championship banner to the rafters inside Amerant Bank Arena on Oct. 8 against their postseason rivals — the Boston Bruins.
The NHL announced the home openers for all 32 teams on Monday, the day after the Panthers’ memorable parade on Fort Lauderdale Beach to celebrate winning their first Stanley Cup.
The game against the Bruins, who were knocked out of the last two postseasons by the Panthers, also will be Florida’s season opener as it is customary for defending champions in all major sports to open at home.
While the full NHL schedule has yet to be released, a couple of Panthers road games to start the 2024-25 season were also announced. Florida will visit the Ottawa Senators on Oct. 10 and play at the Columbus Blue Jackets on Oct. 15.
The full NHL schedule will be released Tuesday.
The Panthers are also favored to win the Stanley Cup next season.
With celebrations continuing around South Florida after last week’s thrilling Game 7 win over the Edmonton Oilers, Florida is the odds-on favorite to repeat as Stanley Cup champions, according to several sportsbooks.
Florida is seeking to become the first repeat champion since the Tampa Bay Lightning accomplished the feat in 2020 and 2021. Before that, the Pittsburgh Penguins won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017.
