OAN Staff James Meyers
2:54 PM – Monday, February 3, 2025
President Donald Trump welcomed the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers to the White House to celebrate their huge victory.
On Monday, the Panthers became the first professional sports team to visit the White House since Trump regained office.
The president gave credit to head coach Paul Maurice’s Stanley Cup ring, gave admiration of captain Alexsander Barkov, and even said that goalie Sergei Bobrovski should be in the hockey hall of fame one day.
“You fell in love with that team, the guts and the courage they had,” Trump said.
During the ceremony, the team presented Trump with “Trump” Panthers jerseys, one with the number 47 and the other with 45 and 47, along with a gold hockey stick.
Florida won their first-ever title in franchise history in June, defeating the Edmonton Oilers in seven games after having a 3-0 series lead.
“I watched those games and I was a little bit worried,” Trump said Monday. “They lost three and I said ‘ooh, this is gonna be a tough loss.’ That would have been bad but you, that’s real champions can pull it out.”
It has been a tradition for decades for championship winning sports teams to visit the White House.
“Both teams showed tremendous willpower and athletic talent, unbelievable talent,” Trump said, “but in the end, the Panthers stood their ground and did what you have to do as a champion. You can’t be a champion unless you go through something like that. … It’s an incredible achievement.”
Among the attendees at the event beyond the Panthers’ contingent were NHL commissioner Gary Bettman; U.S. Florida Senators Rick Scott and Ashley Moody; and U.S. Florida Representatives Byron Donalds, Gus Bilirakis, Mike Haridopolos, Anna Paulina Luna, Jared Moskowitz and Maria Elvira Salazar.
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