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What’s Brewing: ECF Gets Underway; Watch Parties in Florida | Florida Panthers

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What’s Brewing: ECF Gets Underway; Watch Parties in Florida | Florida Panthers


“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.

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“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

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  • **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.

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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.

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“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.

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ECF PREVIEW

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



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South Florida officers sue Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, claiming details in ‘The Rip’ are too real

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South Florida officers sue Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, claiming details in ‘The Rip’ are too real


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“The Rip” features Affleck and Damon as South Florida police officers who find millions of dollars inside a house. Parts of the movie were inspired by a real 2016 case.

FILE – Matt Damon and Ben Affleck attend the world premiere of “The Rip” at Alice Tully Hall, on Jan. 13, 2026, in New York. Photo by CJ Rivera/Invision/AP, File

MIAMI (AP) — Two South Florida police officers claim Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s recent action thriller “The Rip” used too many real-life details in its fictionalized narrative, causing harm to the officers’ personal and professional reputations, according to a defamation lawsuit.

Jason Smith and Jonathan Santana, sergeants in the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, filed the lawsuit in Miami federal court earlier this month against Artists Equity, a film production company owned by Affleck and Damon. Court filings don’t say how much the officers are suing for, but the civil complaint says they’re seeking compensatory damages, punitive damages and attorney fees, as well as a public retraction and correction.

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“The Rip” features Affleck and Damon as South Florida police officers who find millions of dollars inside a house. Parts of the movie were inspired by a real 2016 case, where police found over $21 million linked to a suspected marijuana trafficker in a Miami Lakes home.

An attorney for Artists Equity declined to comment when reached Monday by The Associated Press. But in a March 19 response to the plaintiffs’ demand letter, Leita Walker, an attorney for Artists Equity, wrote that the film does not purport to tell the true story of that incident or portray real people, which had been stated by a disclaimer in the film’s credits.

Although Smith and Santana aren’t named in the film, the lawsuit claims that Santana was serving as the lead detective assigned to the real case, and Smith was the sergeant who supervised the investigative team. The film’s inclusion of real details about the case gives the impression that the characters are based on the plaintiffs, the suit said.

And this, the lawsuit claims, has given friends, family members and colleagues the impression that the plaintiffs committed the criminal acts that appear in the film, which include (SPOILER ALERT) conspiring to steal seized drug money, murdering a supervising officer, communicating with cartel members, committing arson in a residential neighborhood, endangering the lives of civilians, repeatedly violating core law-enforcement protocols and executing a federal agent rather than making an arrest.

Walker wrote in March that the plaintiffs haven’t even identified which particular character is supposed to be based on Smith or Santana, so even if “The Rip” was actually about a real-life narcotics team, there’s no way to connect any of the characters to the plaintiffs.

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“The Rip,” directed by Joe Carnahan, debuted in January on Netflix. It’s currently rated 78% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

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South Florida and Miami news today

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South Florida and Miami news today


You’re watching the NBC6 South Florida News streaming channel, which plays local South Florida news 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can find the “NBC6 South Florida News” streaming channel on your phone or computer, and on Peacock, Samsung, Roku, Xumo or on our app, so you can watch our local news on your schedule.



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Palm Bay, Florida parents of premature twins held NICU wedding

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Palm Bay, Florida parents of premature twins held NICU wedding


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  • A Florida couple, both with prior health issues, welcomed miracle twin boys nine weeks prematurely.
  • The couple’s planned wedding was interrupted by the early birth of their sons, Joshua and Rhett.

Ben and Danielle Cassidy were told they likely wouldn’t be able to have children.

But this year they will celebrate Mother’s Day just months after having an impromptu wedding in the AdventHealth for Children hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit shortly after Danielle gave birth to twins prematurely — a week before the Palm Bay couple was scheduled to get married.

Both babies, Joshua and Rhett, are doing well despite arriving nine weeks ahead of schedule on Jan. 19, 2026, just one day after their scheduled baby shower. With a proper wedding out of the question with two premature babies in the NICU, a nurse took action.

Issabel Kenkel, the nurse behind the ceremony, said she was already in wedding planning mode for her own upcoming nuptials when she found out the Cassidy family’s ceremony would be interrupted.

“I couldn’t just let them do something small. They needed decorations and something fun, so I spoke to the music therapist and the chaplain,” Kenkel said. In short order, a wedding was being planned for their hospital room and the couple was saying their vows in the company of their safely delivered newborns.

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“When we found out we could request staff members to be on our team, that’s when we requested Issabel and having that kind of consistency from someone who has such a big heart and is so kind,” Danielle said.

The hospital ceremony was all the more special because of the Cassidy family’s own health struggles.

“I have five autoimmune diseases and didn’t really think I would have kids. It’s been a rough journey. When Ben and I met, we were floored at how much a miracle it was to have kids,” Danielle said.

Ben, who battled and beat cancer, said he was worried that his prior treatment would result in negative health outcomes for his future children. Having twins for him was an unexpected blessing.

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“When we found out we were pregnant, we found it so shocking. We said, wouldn’t it be great if it was twins? It filled out our hopes and dreams list,” Ben said. “They’ve been miracles for sure.”

The Cassidy couple said there was so much fear and uncertainty when their twins were born nine weeks early. Being able to get married right away just made them feel all the better about the future.

“It was nice getting married because we didn’t have to wait any longer to make it official. It made it that much harder for her to get rid of me,” Ben said.

“The unknown made it scary,” Danielle added. “We had no idea how long we would be in the hospital. Our wedding was going to be at the beach with immediate family and parents. Having NICU babies, we realized we’d never be able to get to the beach. It was really special having the people who care for our babies be part of the ceremony.”

The couple hadn’t even planned to have a band at their wedding ceremony and now the hospital’s music therapist was performing live for them and the chaplain was conducting the ceremony, something nurse Kenkel said was just part of her job.

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“The babies are going to have the best outcomes if the families are taken care of and going home happy,” she said. “Being in the NICU is already so stressful. This is just one more thing I could do to take care of my patients.”

Tyler Vazquez is the Growth and Development Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Vazquez at 321-480-0854 or tvazquez@floridatoday.com. X: @tyler_vazquez.



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