Joe Dionisio looked around the press room at the Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach, Florida. Then, he did a double take.
“It was hard to believe,” Dionisio said. “I was one of the only reporters there. Even the Canadian turnout was sparse.”
This was Dec. 10, 1992, and Joe was in the room at the exact moment when Miami was granted an NHL franchise. On April 20, 1993, owner Wayne Huizenga announced the new team would be called the Florida Panthers.
“I was in shock when Disney CEO Michael Eisner and Miami Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga strolled in to announce their NHL clubs in Anaheim and Miami,” Dionisio said. “Thanks to the virtually nonexistent media presence, I scooped most of the competition.”
A dramatic change in press competition has emerged over the three decades since Dionisio virtually was orphaned in the media scrum at Breakers. After two consecutive Stanley Cup triumphs, the Panthers have welcomed unprecedented attention from journalism outlets, coast-to-coast and overseas. During the 2025 Stanley Cup Final, Amerant Bank Arena’s copious press box couldn’t handle the press demand, so the Panthers swiftly created an auxiliary facility for the overflow.
Dionisio, a reporter/editor at Newsday from 2000 to 2009, is now Adult Hockey Director at the Ice in Paradise rink in Santa Barbara, California. He reflected on the challenges of covering the fledgling Panthers compared to the contemporary press posse.