Panthers Made Unique Staffer Three-Time Champion

The Florida Panthers made Patric Hornqvist a unique three-time Stanley Cup champion.

Jun 24, 2024; Sunrise, Florida, USA; The Florida Panthers pose with the cup for a team photo after winning game seven of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final against the Edmonton Oilers at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports / Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

Patric Hornqvist gained a new perspective of winning the Stanley Cup as a member of the Florida Panthers front office. He was part of a Pittsburgh Penguins team that captured glory in back-to-back years in 2016 and 2017 and was a huge piece of those rosters.

This time, as a scouting and development specialist, Hornqvist got to hoist the Cup in a new way. He dove into some of the differences as he celebrated his day with the Cup.

"You can’t compare,” Hornqvist told NHL.com. “There is a big difference between being on the ice and being in the management suite.”

In 2016, Hornqvist scored an empty-net goal to seal the Penguins Cup victory over the San Jose Sharks. The following year, he broke a scoreless tie in Game 6 against the Nashville Predators with the game-winning goal.

As the Panthers saw their 3-0 series lead head into Game 7, all Hornqvist could do was watch.

“On the ice, you can control what happens,” Hornqvist said. I scored the game-winning goal in one of the finals with Pittsburgh, and you can't compare that to what it's like to win from the stands. But still, both as a player and as a leader, the Stanley Cup is the finest prize you can win in hockey.”

Before becoming a scouting and development specialist, Hornqvist played a couple of seasons with the Panthers. Concussions forced an early end to his playing career, but he remained an integral part of the organization.

During the Panthers’ trip to the Cup Final in 2023, before his official retirement, Hornqvist helped the players in practice and was still vocal in the locker room. His last game was in early December of 2023.

Only recently did the Panthers change his headshot on their website from his player photo to one of him in a suit.

Hornqvist understood what it meant for the Panthers players to win. He had been there twice before and knew it was something special.

“The big thing for me was to see the joy on the ice when the players got to lift the cup."

Of course, at 37, Hornqvist wishes he had been part of the Cup-winning roster in Florida. Having a new perspective on a championship run, however, is still special for the former last overall draft pick in 2005.

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