FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. \u2014 OK, so maybe it wasn\u2019t quite as difficult as winning the Stanley Cup in two consecutive seasons, but for the Florida Panthers, waiting for all the championship rings to be handed out to the executives and support staffs \u2014 and then a dramatic 10-second countdown led by owner Teresa Viola \u2014 before opening the box was pretty tough, too.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat countdown is a culmination of our life\u2019s efforts,\u201d defenseman Aaron Ekblad said.<\/p>\n
When they finally opened their boxes at the private ceremony at the War Memorial in Fort Lauderdale on Monday evening, the day before the 2025-26 season begins, there were audible gasps from players and families alike.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had the opportunity on a couple of occasions to see versions (of the ring) and I declined, because I wanted to have this be special,\u201d Panthers general manager Bill Zito said. \u201cAnd boy oh boy was I ever rewarded.\u201d<\/p>\n
A ring fit for Back-to-Back Champions \ud83d\udc8d pic.twitter.com\/u8Y6fS9Y2f<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) October 6, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n The rings, designed by Jostens, are 14-karat white and yellow gold, with more than 450 diamonds and rubies. The prominent feature is two Stanley Cups, made of diamonds and surrounded by rubies, with \u201cPanthers\u201d in yellow gold set in garnet, meant to evoke the tabs on the sleeves of the players\u2019 jerseys.<\/p>\n One side of the ring has the player\u2019s name in 14-karat yellow gold, with their number set against a yellow-gold sun. The other side says \u201cFlorida\u201d in yellow gold and \u201c2025,\u201d studded with 29 diamonds, with the team\u2019s leaping-cat logo, two palm trees (meant to resemble the ones that surround Amerant Bank Arena) and a banner declaring the Panthers back-to-back champions<\/a>.<\/p>\n The side panels feature 204 hand-set diamonds with 14-karat white-gold palm trees wrapping the finger.<\/p>\n Inside the ring \u2014 and this was Sam Bennett\u2019s favorite part \u2014 is the phrase, \u201cWe apologize to no one.\u201d It\u2019s a \u2026 let\u2019s say, lightly edited version of Bennett\u2019s rallying cry during the parade.<\/p>\n \u201cI was shocked,\u201d Bennett said. \u201cThat was definitely a quote I said after a little bit too many drinks on the parade bus. It\u2019s awesome. It\u2019s very cool that they used it in the ring.\u201d<\/p>\n Underneath that are each of the four opponents the Panthers beat in the playoffs last spring \u2014 Tampa Bay, Toronto, Carolina and Edmonton \u2014 with a bold line struck through each one. Finally, at the bottom, is \u201c06\/17\/25,\u201d the date they became two-time champions.<\/p>\n And just for fun, there\u2019s a black rat featured on the interior palm side of the ring, a nod to the Victory Rat tradition that dates back to Scott Mellanby killing a rat in the locker room with a hockey stick during the Panthers\u2019 run to the 1996 Stanley Cup Final.<\/p>\n As the party continued, the players who were there for both titles wore both rings, catching the light in just the right way and marveling at their own hands \u2014\u00a0and their own handiwork.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a Christmas Day kind of thing, because we have no insight into what it\u2019s going to look like,\u201d coach Paul Maurice said beforehand. \u201cThere\u2019s no leaked ideas. There won\u2019t be a single picture. They do a really good job of keeping it private. And it\u2019s a great little individual keepsake for everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n