NEW YORK, N.Y. – Sports Business Journal announced tonight that the Florida Panthers have been named ‘Sports Team of the Year’ at the 18th Annual Sports Business Awards in New York City. This award was judged from an eligibility period of March 1, 2024 through Feb. 28, 2025.

The Sports Business Awards celebrate excellence in the business of sports and factor all facets of the team’s operations both on and off the ice. The Panthers were nominated for ‘Team of the Year’ in 2023, with tonight’s recognition marking the first win for the organization. The other nominees for Sports Team of the Year were the Cleveland Cavaliers (NBA), Indiana Fever (WNBA), Inter Miami CF (MLS), Los Angeles Dodgers (MLB), USA Gymnastics & Washington Commanders (NFL).

“The Florida Panthers are honored to be named ‘Sports Team of the Year’, a humbling acknowledgement of how far our team has come under the passionate and steadfast leadership of the Viola family,” said Panthers President & CEO Matt Caldwell. “We are grateful to Sports Business Journal for this tremendous recognition that represents the unwavering and unified commitment of our players, coaches, staff members and ownership to success both on and off the ice.”

Off the ice, the Panthers sold out of season tickets for the first time in franchise history and generated a $125+ million impact on the local economy through the last two Stanley Cup Playoff runs. The club secured a new media rightsholder partnership with Scripps Sports increasing access to Panthers hockey to more than 2.6 million households for free, doubling viewership in the first year.

The organization amended and extended the Arena Operating Agreement for the County-owned facility Amerant Bank Arena committing to Broward County long-term, opened their new practice facility Baptist Health IcePlex and reopened a revitalized War Memorial Auditorium concert venue in Fort Lauderdale now operating four venues in Broward County from the Everglades to the beaches.

On the ice led, by President of Hockey Operations & General Manager Bill Zito and Head Coach Paul Maurice, the Panthers won their first-ever Stanley Cup championship in their 30th anniversary season and have made the playoffs in five consecutive seasons, including back-to-back Stanley Cup Final appearances (2023 & 2024). Florida signed several significant players to long-term, cost-effective contract extensions throughout the year including defensemen Gustav Forsling and Dmitry Kulikov, and star forwards Sam Reinhart, Carter Verhaeghe and Anton Lundell and are currently competing in their third consecutive conference final.

For a full list of winners from the Sports Business Awards, please visit SportsBusinessJournal.com.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission is taking another step towards reinstating an annual black bear hunt.

The commission is meeting Wednesday, May 21, in Ocala to consider rules for a 23-day bear hunt in December and an annual hunt from October through December starting in 2026.

The goal is to remove 187 bears from an estimated population of 4,000.

Supporters hail the hunt as an opportunity for hunters to help with population control, while opponents say it’s unnecessary and inhumane.

The last black bear hunt happened in 2015, but was mired in controversy and shut down on the second day after 295 bears of the 320 limit had been killed.

The meeting comes weeks after an 89-year-old man and his dog were killed in a black bear attack in Jerome. It was the first fatal bear mauling on record in Florida.

FWC commissioners have moved the bear hunt up on the agenda, and discussion is taking place in the morning hours.

The FWC staff is currently doing a presentation on the hunt, the quota and the overall bear population.

Other cities in the southeastern United States — Alabama, Mississippi and Texas have viable bear populations where hunting is not allowed, FWC staff showed.

Other states with viable populations do allow hunting.

Fewer than 1% of Floridians have a hunting license to legally hunt any animal, and several public polls have shown that the hunt is wildly unpopular.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission chambers are full today, with dozens of people prepared to speak on the proposed bear hunt.

One side of the crowd is dressed in typical business and casual clothing while the other side is dressed in camouflage patterns.

Commissioners will take the first vote this afternoon on the bear hunt, which, if approved, would take place in December.

Public comment today is limited to two hours, although commissioners could restructure the agenda.

According to a draft proposal, the state would allow hunters to feed bears, kill them near the hand-outs, use packs of dogs and skip check stations.

Florida bear hunt permit cost

The proposal that will be considered in Ocala divides the state into seven “Bear Management Units” and declares any area with more than 200 bears a “Bear Harvest Zone” – there is no cap on how many bears can be taken from one BMU. 

Hunting permits would be issued through a random drawing and cost $100 for a Florida resident and $300 for anyone else; 187 permits would be issued this year. 

Bear encounters on the rise in Florida

Per FWC, nuisance bear calls climbed from 2,000 in 2016 to more than 6,000 in 2024.   

“As the bear population grows and development occurs, we are probably going to see more bears move into developed areas. So that’s one reason we want to try to manage bear population growth,” FWC’s director of hunting and game management Morgan Richardson said.

Florida’s saw first fatal bear attack on record in May 2025

An elderly man and his dog were killed in a black bear attack in the unincorporated Collier County community of Jerome, Florida, on May 5.

Witnesses called police when they saw a bear maul the man’s dog.

Robert Markel, 89, was found dead on the property, about 100 yards from the dog.

A necropsy of three bears killed by FWC near the scene found Markel’s partial remains in the body of a 263-pound male. Additionally, the bear’s DNA was found on Markel’s body, in his home and on the dog’s body.

Contributing: Amy Bennett Williams, Naples Daily News; James Call, Tallahassee Democrat

“I wasn’t ready to stop playing hockey.”

Safe to say Sam Bennett summed things up perfectly during Game 7 in Toronto.

After taking down the Maple Leafs in a wild seven-game series, the Florida Panthers will continue their quest for a second straight Stanley Cup when they face-off against the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final, starting with Game 1 on Tuesday.

In 2023, the Panthers swept the Hurricanes to reach the Stanley Cup Final.

“I think the only difference is what we’ve gone through and having that experience to rely on,” forward Matthew Tkachuk said of the impending rematch. “There’s really not much different with us. We’re still goofing around, having fun, joking all the time. But when it’s time to put those work boots on, I don’t think there’s a team that works harder.”

While the Panthers will start the series on the road, there’s still a party in South Florida.

To see what’s going on around the Territory this week and beyond, continue below.

THE GAMES

Tuesday, May 20: at Carolina Hurricanes – 8 p.m. ET

• **TV & Streaming**: TNT, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
• Radio: 560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 92.1 WZZR-FM (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); Panthers App; SiriusXM Channel 220 / App & Streaming 931

Thursday, May 22: at Carolina Hurricanes – 8 p.m. ET

• **TV & Streaming**: TNT, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
• Radio: 560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 92.1 WZZR-FM & 1230 WBZT-AM (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); Panthers App; SiriusXM Channel 220 / App & Streaming 931

Saturday, May 24: at Carolina Hurricanes – 8 p.m. ET

• **TV & Streaming**: TNT, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
• Radio: 560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 92.1 WZZR-FM & 1230 WBZT-AM (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); Panthers App; SiriusXM Channel 220 / App & Streaming 931
• Tickets: Click Here

WATCH PARTIES

Grab your jersey and get ready to party this week.

For Game 1 on Tuesday, fans can head to Funky Buddha Brewery to enjoy drinks, food, special appearances and more.

For Game 2 on Thursday, the party will be even bigger at FTL War Memorial.

The first official Panthers watch party at the newest concert venue in downtown Fort Lauderdale, doors will open to the auditorium at 6:30 p.m. for a live band performance

After that, fans can enjoy pregame show at 7:30 p.m. before the and 8 p.m. puck drop.

For more information on both watch parties, click HERE.

THIRD LINE SHINES

As it has been all playoffs, the third line is on another level for the Panthers.

Through two rounds, Anton Lundell, Brad Marchand and Eetu Luostarinen have combined for 34 points, with Luostarinen and Marchand tied for the team lead with 12 points each.

At 5-on-5, the line boasts a 60.26 shared of expected goals, per NaturalStatTrick.com.

“Their line has been unbelievable all playoffs,” forward Carter Verhaeghe said. “They’re scoring big goals, they’re playing tough minutes and the best players, and it’s so nice to see. It takes pressure off everyone else in the goal-scoring department and stuff like that.”

Not just piling up points, the line is also bringing the body.

Heading into the Eastern Conference Final, Luostarinen ranks second on the team with 63 hits, while Marchand (19 hits) and Lundell (15 hits) have also been getting very physical.

They’ve also combined for 31 blocked shots.

“We just want to keep going and keep the pressure on,” Luostarinen said.

ECF PREVIEW

Watch below as Goldie and Randy get everyone ready for Panthers vs. Hurricanes.