Inside The Heat

Miami Heat's Alonzo Mourning Joins The Dolphins In Supporting The Florida Panthers

Hunter Jennings

Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

With the Miami Heat eliminated from the playoffs, most of South Florida has tuned to watching the Florida Panthers run through the NHL playoffs behind Vezina Trophy finalist Sergei Bobrovsky and Frank J. Selke winner Aleksander Barkov.

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It has brought out support from fans as well the Miami Heat and Dolphins the past few weeks. Heat legend Alonzo Mourning was the latest Panthers hype man. He attended Game 2 to continue the Panthers tradition of a fan banging the drum to bring energy to the crowd. It was Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel handling the honor for Game 1.

With a 2-0 lead against the Edmonton Oilers, the Panthers are two wins shy of their first Stanley Cup.

The Panthers have rolled through the postseason, beating the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 in the first round. They followed that by defeating Boston Bruins 4-2 in the Eastern Conference semfinals and then knocking off the New York Rangers 4-2 in the conference finals.

Last year the Heat and Panthers both lost in the Finals of their respective sports. The Heat fell in five to the Denver Nuggets while the Panthers had the same fate against the Las Vegas Knights.

This time, the Panthers appear headed toward a different outcome. They have dominated the Oilers,
shutting out three-time Hart winner Connor McDavid. He has zero points in the series.

Bobrovsky has produced two of the greatest Finals performances in league history, including a second shutout in the playoffs in Game 1. The Panthers are on the cusp of winning South Florida's first championship in a major sport since the Heat in 2013.

Hunter Jennings is a contributor to Inside The Heat. He can be reached at htrjennings@gmail.com.

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Hunter Jennings
HUNTER JENNINGS

Hunter Jennings is a contributor to Inside The Heat