For the first time in their 32-year-history, Florida Panthers registered their maiden Stanley Cup win last season after besting Edmonton Oilers 4-3. And guess what? This season was all about establishing a winning tradition. Facing the same opponents once again, the Miami metropolitan area-based team pulled off a dominating 5-1 triumph earlier this month. Undoubtedly the victory ended up sending Panthers fans into celebration mode with special messages coming in from all corners. Even some of the tennis icons, like Coco Gauff couldn’t help herself from being a part of this milestone, saying “SoFlo” in her message. However, if there’s one WTA legend who appears to have fully embraced the Stanley Cup celebrations, it has to be 18-time slam queen Martina Navratilova. Wait, Navratilova and NHL?
For the uninitiated, this year’s French Open champion Gauff took to her IG few weeks back and admired Panthers’ epic win over Oilers that saw them pocketing $6.5 million for their postseason run. And this week, legend Navratilova joined the winners while making their Stanley Cup celebrations even special and memorable.
So apparently, Panthers invited Navratilova to join their second-straight Stanley Cup win after 2024. In fact, the former tennis icon even shared her reaction from how did her time with the champions go. “Ha! It was actually champagne! So I took another gulp:)”, she wrote while revealing what she drank from inside the Cup while holding it.
Ha! It was actually champagne! So I took another gulp:)
— Martina Navratilova (@Martina) June 23, 2025
As reported by the Tennis Channel, the Panthers went for a celebratory meal at the Maple & Ash steakhouse in Miami. The players got to enjoy seafood tower, Bluefin tuna tartare, Caesar salad, bone-in ribeye steaks, spaghetti, branzino and lobster. Not to mention the chocolate cake, coconut cream pie and raspberry macarons. And joining them was Navratilova who got to have a good look at the trophy. And yes it was heavy. “Thanks goodness I had help holding it!!!”, she wrote on social media as reported by the Tennis Channel on June 22. Applauding the epic win, she said, “What an amazing feat by the Panthers—well deserved!!!”
But guess what? Navratilova’s Stanley Cup connection goes deeper with the Panthers. Now you must be wondering how? Well, let’s roll back a year ago to understand this newly established tradition.
Martina Navratilova’s strange link to Stanley Cup and NHL explored
One can say it was destiny that the tennis icon happened to become Florida Panthers’ new team member. The story actually began last year when they won their first Stanley Cup trophy after defeating the Edmonton Oilers.
For the uninitiated, Navratilova and Panthers happened to be in the same restaurant after they won first of their back-to-back titles. On the other hand, the tennis legend was there for dinner to celebrate her wife Julia Lemigova’s birthday. When their paths eventually crossed, the NHL winners let her take a sip out of the cup as she also met Aleksander Barkov. Not to mention it was a pure fangirl moment for her.
“So this happened when I took Julia out for her birthday- the Panthers were at the same restaurant- how lucky am I? This lucky- hanging out with Aleksander Barkov:)!!!”, Navratilova wrote on X last June.
When asked what did she drink from inside the Cup during the celebrations, the former World No.1 revealed, “It was Stella, if you must know,” reported Tennis Channel in June 2024. And this year? Well, she was officially on the guest list. What an amazing crossover of tennis and NHL, isn’t it? What are your thoughts? Do let us know in the comments below.
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