Reinhart 'not going to miss' Panthers' Cup parade after historic performance

SUNRISE, Fla. -- On June 30, 2024, tens of thousands of rain-drenched fans braved tropical downpours at Fort Lauderdale Beach to watch the Florida Panthers hoist the Stanley Cup during their championship parade.

What they didn’t see was forward Sam Reinhart lift it.

Because he wasn’t there.

The Panthers forward, who had scored the winning goal in Florida’s Cup-clinching 2-1 victory against the Edmonton Oilers in Game 7 of the 2024 Final, could not make it because he had a previous commitment to attend a friend’s wedding.

On Tuesday, 352 days later, he ensured there will be another such party coming up.

“And I’m not going to miss this one,” he said, grinning ear to ear. “I'll guarantee you that.”

Indeed, the Panthers will have another such parade in the coming days, thanks in part to a historic effort from the 29-year-old forward.

With the Cup in the building, Reinhart became only the second player to ever score four goals in a Stanley Cup-clinching contest, helping the Panthers to a 5-1 victory against the Oilers in Game 6 and a 4-2 win in the best-of-seven series to secure a second consecutive NHL title. The only other player to do it: Babe Dye of the 1922 Toronto St. Patricks, who accomplished the feat 103 years earlier.

In addition, he’s the fourth player in NHL history with three-plus goals to clinch the Cup, following Dye, Mark Stone (2023 Vegas Golden Knights) and Jack Darragh (1920 Ottawa Senators).

“This is the best,” he said, tears welling up in his eyes. “Nothing beats this.”

Especially doing it twice in a row.

“I can’t really put into words what it means,” Reinhart said. “It’s something you never really think about. You know, in a lot of instances, this one was even harder to overcome and be here at the end.

“It’s pretty special. I mean, we’ve had guys step up all postseason long. It almost takes the pressure off us knowing that someone’s going to do it.

“So, you know, we’re proud of this.”

He should be, especially given how banged up he was in the Eastern Conference Final against the Carolina Hurricanes.

“Sam Reinhart had a Grade 2 MCL tear in the Carolina series and took some days off,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “It took him a few games to get back to health.”

Even with that, Reinhart finished the playoffs with 23 points (11 goals, 12 assists), tied for the team lead with forwards Matthew Tkachuk (eight goals, 15 assists) and Carter Verhaeghe (seven goals, 16 assists). As for the fact that two of his four goals Tuesday were scored with Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner on the bench for an extra attacker, Maurice said it didn’t take away from his big-time performance.

“If you’re Sam Reinhart, he scored a game-winner in Game 7 last year and he banged in four,” Maurice said. “Nobody’s going to say if there was a goalie in the net and nobody’s going to care. He just scored goals.

“That was a pretty good story.”

Proud papa Paul Reinhart couldn’t agree more.

The elder Reinhart played 648 NHL games for the Atlanta/Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks, with 559 points (133 goals, 426 assists) as a defenseman. He made the playoffs in nine of his 11 seasons, reaching the Stanley Cup Final once, in 1986, when the Flames lost to the Montreal Canadiens in five games.

Now he’s seen his son win the Cup twice, each time with his boy scoring crucial goals. The embrace both shared on the ice Tuesday in the chaos of the on-ice Cup celebration was a symbol of what it exactly meant to both.

“I’ve seen Sam evolve from a very good player to an elite player in the last couple of years which is a testament to the people he is around, the organization, the work he’s put in, all of it,” Paul said. “But significant credit to him.

“Look, if you’re not going to win a Stanley Cup yourself, I can’t imagine a better scenario than to see your son win not just one but two. And in a position to do it again.”

Not to mention the fact that on Monday Sam was selected as one of the first six players for Team Canada for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, joining forwards Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh Penguins), Nathan MacKinnon (Colorado Avalanche), Connor McDavid (Oilers), Brayden Point (Tampa Bay Lightning), and defenseman Cale Makar (Avalanche).

“To be selected top six in your country is elite and spectacular, and can’t be underestimated,” Paul said. “I think it is a testament to just how much his game has come together in the last five or six years.”

You don’t have to convince Team Canada general manager Doug Armstrong of that.

Armstrong was on hand to see Reinhart compile four assists in four games during Canada’s title run at the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament in February. On Tuesday, he was at his St. Louis-area home watching Reinhart’s heroics for the Panthers.

“Big game player!” Armstrong said in a text to NHL.com once the final horn had sounded.

Now onto the parade.

One Reinhart will actually be able to attend this time.