Aaron Ekblad’s selection for the 2016 All-Star Game secured his place in franchise history. The 19-year-old became just one of six Panthers ever selected for consecutive All-Star Games, the others being John Vanbiesbrouck, Viktor Kozlov, Pavel Bure, Sandis Ozolinsh and Roberto Luongo. Out of all the amazing names on that list, Ekblad was the first […]

Mark Fitzpatrick made a save during the first month of Panthers hockey in October 1993. Fitzpatrick started in goal for the first time on Oct. 19 (a 2-2 tie with the LA Kings) and went on to provide critical backup for John Vanbiesbrouck for several seasons, including during the 1996 Stanley Cup Playoffs run. Fitzpatrick […]

Mark Fitzpatrick was one of the first Panthers goalies, coming to the team in the expansion draft. He appeared in two playoff games in 1996, serving as the backup to John Vanbiesbrouck.

Over 10,000 Panthers fans visited the Broward County Convention Center to enjoy Hockeyfest 1997. The event featured broomball rinks, souvenir booths, a museum of hockey memorabilia and meet & greets with every Panthers player. The line to meet John Vanbiesbrouck took hours, but perhaps the biggest star in attendance was Stanley C. Panther.

Fans could re-live John Vanbiesbrouck’s 12 wins and 685 saves in the 1996 playoffs with this collectible figurine.

Goalie skates are a little different from standard ice hockey skates. Note that the surface of the skate is reinforced with a “cowling” — that’s the white, plastic-like covering — to prevent damage from 100+ mph slapshots. You can see that some of the 1,638 shots John Vanbiesbrouck faced in the 1997-1998 season left black […]

Panthers great John Vanbiesbrouck was featured on various hockey memorabilia, including decorative pucks. He is third on the franchise’s all-time list for wins (106).

With the final home game at Miami Arena at the end of the 1997-1998 season, six players from the inaugural season still remained Panthers. Those players helped shape the budding franchise, contributing a Rat Trick, several All-Star Game appearances and a memorable run to the 1996 Stanley Cup Final.

Robert Svehla was known throughout his career for shying away from media attention. So how did the defenseman react to the spotlight of his first-ever All-Star Game? “I think Robert’s enjoying this,” said teammate and fellow All-Star John Vanbiesbrouck. Head coach Doug MacLean agreed, noting with a laugh that he saw Svehla “smile a couple […]

John Vanbiesbrouck was elected starting goaltender for the Eastern Conference at the 1997 NHL All-Star Game. Later that year, he earned his 300th win as a goalie with a 6-2 defeat of the New York Islanders on December 27, 1997. At the time, Vanbiesbrouck was only the fifteenth player and second American to accomplish the […]