Are the Florida Panthers Knocking on the 1970s Dolphins Neighborhood?

A headline not one person would’ve ever expected to write, read, think, or even conceive at any point in time. But here we are, with the Florida Panthers, yes, the Florida Panthers, winning back-to-back Stanley Cup titles during a run that has seen them appear in three straight Cup Finals, earn the Presidents’ Trophy for the most points in a season, and have heard the word “dynasty” mentioned. Oh, and they have everyone coming back for a shot at a 3-peat. As inconceivable as it might have seemed, the topic now is: Where does it stack up in terms of South Florida sports history?

When it comes to all-time teams, not just in South Florida, but in all of sports, the conversation, at least for the last 50+ years, has begun and, in South Florida’s case, ended with the 1970s Miami Dolphins. Even the four trips to the Finals and two NBA titles by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh’s Miami Heat usually don’t compare to what the Dolphins achieved in the 1970s. Some people even whisper that the Heat run was a disappointment since they “only” won 2 titles in those 4 years and then were gone, in a quick “rent a Super Team scenario. It should not diminish what they accomplished, but it doesn’t usually compete with the all-time teams in South Florida, which again,  is the 1971-73 Dolphins.

Let’s start with what we all know and have come to obsess about over the last 50+ years. The standard of  NFL dynasty dates back to those 1970s Dolphins, who were the first team in NFL history to make it to three straight Super Bowls. After the loss to Dallas in Super Bowl VI, Miami did something no professional sports team has done and has done since, going undefeated and perfect for a 17-0 season in 1972, capped off by a dominant Super Bowl VII win. Following that up with what some say was an even more dominant team in 1973, the Dolphins finished 15-2 and won their second consecutive Super Bowl, completing a 3-year run that has hardly been matched in any sport.

• 44-6-1 (.872 win pct) over 3 seasons
• First team to go to 3 straight Super Bowls; Won back-to-back titles
• Six HOF Fame players and 2 HOF executives

That’s been the standard. Teams have come close to perfection, like the 2007 New England Patriots, and many have won back-to-back Super Bowls, but only the 1990s Bills and recent Kansas City Chiefs have even been to three straight Super Bowls. And in South Florida, with the Marlins having 2 titles over 6 years with dismantles in between, the Panthers being irrelevant for 25 years, we’ve only had the Heat’s run to even sniff the Dolphins’ 1970s run until now.

Now, enter the Florida Panthers. The 2022 Presidents’ Trophy winners are finishing the season with the most points in the NHL. A surprise run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2023 after squeezing out a playoff spot on the last weekend of the season, and now back-to-back runs to glory as Stanley Cup Champions. In a salary cap era that makes it extremely hard to keep teams together, GM Bill Zito has done exactly that, signing the majority of the team to long-term deals in hopes of extending the run. What makes the run even more impressive is that the Panthers franchise had done exactly nothing in the preceding 25 years, having not even one postseason series win from losing in the 1996 Cup Finals to 2001. Since then, the best team in hockey and one of the best runs we’ve seen in recent times.

• NHL-leading 122 points in 2022
• 3 straight trips to the Stanley Cup Final
• Back-to-back Championships

While it’s too early to tell how many of these Panthers end up in the HOF and we have no idea how long the run is going to continue, let’s say the Panthers do it again in 2026, becoming the first team since the 1980’s Islanders to win 3 Cups in row… are we then saying that the 1970’s Dolphins era has been matched or even exceeded? What neighborhood would they be in?