Panthers mainstream media booming since dawn of franchise in 1992

Legendary hockey reporter Stan Fischler writes a weekly scrapbook for NHL.com. Fischler, known as "The Hockey Maven," shares his humor and insight with readers each Wednesday. This week focuses on Florida Panthers media through the eyes of a reporter who was there when the franchise was born nearly 33 years ago. A former Newsday columnist, Joe Dionisio wrote the inaugural story about the Panthers' admittance to the NHL. He discussed South Florida's early NHL journalism scene with a look at present coverage as well.

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.

Gordie Howe and Palm Beach Post reporter Joe Dionisio at a Sunshine Hockey League Blaze game at West Palm Beach Auditorium in November 1993.

In 1992, how did you become the first hockey columnist in South Florida newspaper history?

"Amazingly, it had nothing to do with the NHL. When I begged my Palm Beach Post editor to let me write about pucks, the 'Cats' didn't exist. That left me covering every sport except hockey: football, Mets spring training, boxing, PGA golf… even senior-citizen Ping-Pong! I was easily the worst fishing reporter in history."

So, what changed?

"Two semipro hockey leagues were born, both with Floridian franchises, so my editors finally caved in and gave me a column. The Sunshine Hockey League was a blast. Coached by former Montreal Canadiens defenseman Bill Nyrop, the West Palm Beach Blaze won the championship in all three years of the SHL's existence. Blaze goalie Kelly Dyer made history as one of the first women to play men's pro hockey. I even interviewed Gordie Howe and Bobby Orr at Blaze games. Long before Alex Ovechkin jumped into the fountain at the Georgetown waterfront, the Blaze had a Cup-winning tradition of jumping into the moat surrounding the West Palm Beach Auditorium."

A 1993 bumper sticker from the West Palm Beach Blaze, the flagship franchise that won three titles during the Sunshine Hockey League's only three seasons.

Which other hockey league arrived in Florida?

"Roller Hockey International, which aired on ESPN. I was drafted as a player by the Florida Hammerheads, who skated at a rustic rink in Greenacres, so I was in the awkward position of covering a squad I was practicing with. (Mark Messier owned the rival Tampa Tritons.) Luckily, I had ample content to fill a column before the Panthers' birth."

How else did your roller hockey roots affect the Panthers?

"Painful tale! Inline hockey was booming, so Todd Hudson, honcho at Atlantis Skateway in Greenacres, invited me to create a new club. I agreed, but wasn't certain what to name it. 'Call it the Florida Panthers,' he said adamantly. As if he was psychic, he even demanded I copyright the name. Being unfamiliar that panthers lived in the Floridian ecosystem, I laughed off his idea and used Palm Beach Pelicans. If not for me, today's Florida Panthers would have an entirely different nickname."

How did you convince the Palm Beach Post to cover the NHL meetings in the first place?

"I nagged them to death. I even offered to cover the original presser for free. By the time I moved to Florida, I had covered the New Jersey Devils and New York Islanders for Newsday, edited several of your books, and you had lined me up to do work for the Los Angeles Kings and Detroit Red Wings, so none of my Florida coworkers had my qualifications."

How did you feel about Panthers president Bill Torrey putting the team together?

"Excited. I knew Torrey from my Nassau Coliseum days, but hadn't interacted with him much. Only when I moved to Palm Beach did I have the privilege of socializing with him. I was also friendly with the Cats' PR guy, Greg Bouris, another Islander alum. Although Torrey had endured some journalistic growing pains with the (Islanders) in 1972, the Metro New York writers such as Sid Payne of the Long Island Press and Gerald Eskenazi of the Times knew the sport. Florida media needed to be schooled."

What schooling techniques were used?

"Bouris had a clever idea to educate Florida media about hockey. His gimmick was a friendly game of 4-on-4. It had to be street hockey, since few reporters could skate. Each team featured two Panthers and two journalists, most of whom barely knew which end of the stick to hold. The Cats' broadcaster Jeff Rimer called the game."

Which players skated in the media street hockey game.

"My goalie was NFLer-turned-radio host, Joe Rose. He was no Dominik Hasek, but he could see I had played hockey. As we were [losing] 8-2, he ordered our squad to abandon the friendly act of equal ice time for our seven media members and said, 'I don't want that New Yorker -- me -- coming off the rink for the rest of the game.' I used my flashiest toe drag and left Panthers ace Brian Skrudland in the dust to score a goal and start our rally. We ended up winning 14-12."

Which Panthers impressed you?

"Dave Lowry and Bill Lindsay were terrific guys, and of course John Vanbiesbrouck was the face of the franchise. They looked shocked that a local scribe had any puck skill. But Skrudland got even. Late in the contest we had another one-on-one. When I attempted my same flashy dangle, 'Screwy' threw a massive hip check that sent me crashing to the pavement. As he stood over me, he said with a good-natured smile, 'That's what you get for showing me up.' It's one of my fondest memories."

Finally, how would you describe your paper's early interest in the Panthers?

"NHL coverage faced a harsh pushback. One day, my coworkers were discussing how to cover a particular hockey story. After I remarked how we did it 'back at Newsday,' a coworker barked, 'If you'd like to do it that way, then go back to New York.' Another time, I was reprimanded for having the audacity to put Stanley Cup Final news on my page instead of high school volleyball. The current Panthers sure have changed that sort of thinking, haven't they."

Top photo: Panthers goalie John Vanbiesbrouck at a photo shoot on the sandy beaches of South Florida