Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in Sunrise , Florida , in the South Florida metropolitan area . They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) . They play their games at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise and are currently the southernmost team in the NHL . Franchise history . 1990s . Blockbuster Video magnate H . Wayne Huizenga was awarded an NHL franchise for Miami on December 10 , 1992 . The Panthers were brought into the league with the Anaheim Mighty Ducks and took part in the 1993 expansion draft , which was hosted by the Quebec Nordiques . The expansion draft produced 10 players that would be a part of the 1996 Eastern Conference championship team . The team played at the Miami Arena , and its first major stars were New York Rangers goaltender castoff John Vanbiesbrouck , rookie Rob Niedermayer , and Scott Mellanby , who scored 30 goals . Their first game was a 4 - 4 tie on the road against the Chicago Blackhawks . The first win in franchise history was a 2 - 0 shutout of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Thunderdome before a then - NHL record crowd of 27 , 227 . The Panthers had one of the most successful first seasons of any expansion team ( and the best first year of any NHL team ) , finishing one point below . 500 and narrowly missing out on the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference . Their first - year success was attributed mainly to the " trap defense " that first - year coach Roger Neilson implemented . This conservative style was widely criticized by NHL teams ; some even suggested that the Panthers were ruining the game at the time . After another close brush with the playoffs in 1994 – 95 , Neilson was fired and replaced by Doug MacLean . The team then acquired Ray Sheppard from the San Jose Sharks at the trade deadline in 1995 – 96 and looked toward the playoffs for the first time . Also during that season , a very unusual goal celebration developed in Miami . On the night of the Panthers ' 1995 – 96 home opener , a rat scurried across the team ' s locker room . Mellanby reacted by " one - timing " the rat against the wall , killing it . That night , he scored two goals , which Vanbiesbrouck quipped was " a rat trick . " Two nights later , as the story found its way into the world , a few fans threw rubber rats on the ice in celebration of a goal . The rubber rat count went from 16 for the third home game to over 2 , 000 during the playoffs . In the 1996 playoffs , as the fourth seed , the Panthers faced the Boston Bruins in the first round and won in five games . Bill Lindsay ' s famous series - clinching goal is still a trademark image for the incredible run the third - year franchise went on . The Cats went on to upset the top - seeded Philadelphia Flyers in six games and then the second - seeded Pittsburgh Penguins in seven ( with Tom Fitzgerald scoring what would end up being the game - winning goal ) to reach the Stanley Cup Final . Their opponent , the Colorado Avalanche , swept the Panthers in four games . Uwe Krupp scored the winning goal on a slap shot from the blue line for the Avalanche in the third overtime of Game 4 to defeat the Panthers 1 - 0 . Colorado was led by captain Joe Sakic in the franchise ' s first year in Denver after moving from Quebec City . The Panthers would begin the next season with a 17 – game unbeaten streak but faded in the second half of the season . They lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Wayne Gretzky - led Rangers in five games . The 1997 – 98 season would be a return to mediocrity for the Panthers . After a 7 – 12 – 4 start , the Panthers fired MacLean , replacing him for the season with general manager Bryan Murray . The change did not aid matters , as Florida suffered a franchise - worst 24 – 43 – 15 record , including a 15 – game winless streak . This season would also mark the end of Vanbiesbrouck ' s time in Florida , who in the midst of that streak , was shelled by the Chicago Blackhawks and never played another game for the Panthers . He would sign with the Flyers that off - season as a free agent . The Panthers moved into the brand new National Car Rental Center ( now known as BankAtlantic Center ) in 1998 . In 1998 – 99 , they acquired Pavel Bure ( the " Russian Rocket " ) , in a blockbuster trade with the Vancouver Canucks . They reached the playoffs again in 1999 – 00 , losing in a first - round sweep to the eventual Stanley Cup Champion New Jersey Devils . 2000s . The team slumped in 2000 – 01 . The following season , 2001 – 02 , the Panthers had their worst record ever . Bure struggled despite being reunited with his brother Valeri , and was traded to the Rangers at the 2002 trading deadline . The Panthers then started coveting defenceman Jay Bouwmeester , who was widely tipped to be picked first overall in the 2002 draft . But then - General Manager Rick Dudley sent Florida ' s first pick to the Columbus Blue Jackets , who took winger Rick Nash . The Atlanta Thrashers , after picking goalie Kari Lehtonen second overall , announced that the Panthers had given them two draft picks to guarantee that Bouwmeester would still be available for Florida ' s selection . Bouwmeester was selected third overall by the Panthers . Said then - head coach Mike Keenan , " We shouldn ’ t have done that . . . Jay would have been number - one if we ' d kept that pick . " In 2003 , the Panthers hosted the NHL All - Star Weekend in which the Western Conference earned a 6 – 5 victory after the first OT shootout in All - Star history . The West overcame a four - goal outburst by Thrashers winger Dany Heatley , who took home MVP honors in his first All - Star Game . On June 23 , 2006 , the Panthers were again involved in a blockbuster trade with the Vancouver Canucks , sending Roberto Luongo , Lukas Krajicek , and a sixth - round draft pick ( Sergei Shirokov ) in exchange for Todd Bertuzzi , Alex Auld , and Bryan Allen . This trade has been regarded by some as one of the worst trades in professional sports history . Luongo who was and still is at the prime of his career is one of the top goalies in the NHL . Bertuzzi only played a handful of games for the Cats before getting injured . He would be traded to Detroit Red Wings at the trade deadline for Shawn Matthias and prospect Rob Capellupo . Alex Auld ended up being a poor replacement for the Panthers former franchise goalie and was let go after one season . On June 22 , 2007 , the Florida Panthers were involved in yet another draft day deal involving a goalie . The Florida Panthers acquired Tomas Vokoun from the Nashville Predators in exchange for three draft picks , a first round pick in 2008 , a second round pick in 2008 , and a conditional second round pick that can be used in 2007 or 2008 . The move would eventually pay off when Vokoun was selected to the Eastern Conference All - Star team . On July 28 , 2007 , the Florida Panthers unveiled their new jerseys to over 11 , 000 fans at the BankAtlantic Center during the first intermission of the Panthers 1996 Reunion game . Star forwards Nathan Horton and Stephen Weiss were both in full gear to help showcase the sweater changes . As of 2008 , the Florida Panthers are the only team in the NHL to have a lifetime winning percentage of . 500 or better over the team with the most Stanley Cup titles in NHL history , the Montreal Canadiens . In June 2008 , the Panthers traded their captain Olli Jokinen to the Phoenix Coyotes for a second round draft pick and two defensemen : Keith Ballard and Nick Boynton . The Panthers finished the 2008 – 09 season with a strong 41 - 30 - 11 record and 93 points , their second best ever in franchise history . Despite this , however , the Panthers missed the playoffs for an eighth straight season , the current longest streak in the NHL . On November 23 , 2009 the Panthers made their third jersey , ridding red from the alternate jersey , replacing it with powder blue . The Florida Panthers missed the playoffs for the 9th consecutive time in the 2009 - 10 NHL Season , making them the first team in NHL history to do so in one city . If the Panthers are to miss the playoffs in the 2010 - 11 NHL Season , they will have the sole record for most consecutive seasons of missing the playoffs , with 10 . Season - by - season record . " Note : GP = Games played , W = Wins , L = Losses , T = Ties , OTL = Overtime Losses , Pts = Points , GF = Goals for , GA = Goals against , PIM = Penalties in minutes " Notable players . Franchise scoring leaders . These are the top - ten point - scorers in franchise history . Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season . " Note : Pos = Position ; GP = Games played ; G = Goals ; A = Assists ; Pts = Points ; P / G = Points per game ; * = current Panthers player " NHL awards and trophies . Prince of Wales Trophy Stanley Cup Maurice " Rocket " Richard Trophy