Torrential downpours and lightning did not stop droves of Florida Panther fans in Fort Lauderdale from partying outside for hours to celebrate the ice hockey team’s championship.
The victory was dramatic. A Game 7 win after blowing a 3-0 series lead to lift the first Stanley Cup in the team's 30-year history. The celebrations were appropriately wild. Not even a torrential downpour — so bad that flood warnings were issued — accompanied by a huge lightning storm could stop the Panthers’ Stanley Cup parade.
The fans braved the storm, awaiting the champs' arrival on double-decker buses that took a beachfront route down the A1A before stopping for a rally where the trophy was hoisted time and time again.
“This is the most Florida thing I can think of, I mean what’s more Florida than it raining on a special event?” said Andrew Garcia, who had traveled from Charlotte, NC, and could not have cared less about the conditions.
The 28-year-old grew up in Broward and spent his childhood playing hockey at what is now the Florida Panthers IceDen. Last Monday, when the team clinched the win, is a night he will not forget soon.
“I was jumping up and down, and I was screaming, it was amazing,” Garcia said. “I sent flowers to my downstairs neighbor because she’s a lovely old woman and I definitely woke her up.”
Christina Lewis is another fan who travelled far to join in the celebrations. The 31-year-old, who grew up watching Panthers games in Fort Lauderdale, had hopped on a redeye flight from San Diego and landed in Florida at 6 a.m.
“I need a coffee, but I’m so excited,” Lewis said.
Her cousin Charly Zubizarreta, recalled going to games together when she was a kid and Lewis was a baby.
“It feels like a long time coming, but at the same time, extremely well deserved,” Zubizarreta said. “After rooting for them and waiting for it and hoping and praying, [we] see it come to fruition.”
READ MORE: 'Unbelievable': Fans celebrate Florida Panthers' first Stanley Cup win after Game 7 nail-biter
At the end of the parade, a stage was set up on Fort Lauderdale Beach, where the team held a rally before thousands of soaked fans. Carter Verhaeghe was the player who got to initially bring the Cup onto the stage, as Queen’s “We Are The Champions” blared — and nobody minded that it was still raining.
Panthers coach Paul Maurice — no stranger to profanity — dropped more than a few bleepable moments in his remarks. "Thirty f***ing years," he shouted to the crowd. "This is for all of you!”
“In my wildest dreams I never would have thought I could see this,” Maurice said from the stage, thanking fans and players for making the Cup run possible. “Seriously. Understand this. Everybody that we love in this world is ... happy right now.”
The parade and the rally capped a first few days of celebration that included the following items, among others, going into the Stanley Cup at various times: beer, champagne, apple juice, no fewer than three human beings — all children of players — and a steaming dish of pasta topped with freshly grated cheese, a dinner that Panthers legend Roberto Luongo proudly enjoyed.
Orlando resident Belal Jaber came to the parade with his 6-year-old son Dean. The 39-year-old hopes that the Panthers can go back to back and win the cup again next year.
“[My son] has helped us become a hockey family, so it’s really exciting to see the excitement through him,” Jaber said. “It’s not a true South Florida celebration unless there’s some thunderstorms.”
Additional reporting from the Associated Press.
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