Florida Panthers' Brad Marchand (63) raises the Stanely Cup after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final in Sunrise, Fla., Tuesday, June 17, 2025. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

Earlier this week, the Florida Panthers beat the Edmonton Oilers 5-1 in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals to win their second straight Cup.

Before the game, I watched the Oilers warm up for their 18-minute allotted time and took some phenomenal pictures of their two superstars, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

I was close enough to hear the pucks hit off the glass.

I then went to my seat, which was center ice, but in the eighth row of the 300 level, and I was able to take some great action shots from the game and got some cool videos of a couple of the Panthers’ goals.

Seconds after the victory, with their helmets off, the Panthers were celebrating. You can see the plastic rats (a Florida tradition) on the ice with sticks and helmets.

The Edmonton players stayed on the ice for at least five minutes while the Panthers celebrated, waiting for the traditional handshake line.

I have seen championship celebrations in almost every single sport. Nothing even comes remotely close to the Stanley Cup celebration — including Super Bowls, World Series, NBA Finals, golf and tennis championships and even Triple Crown celebrations.

The Cup is literally history with the names on it of the players of every championship team. There are now over 2,200 names on the Cup.

It is brought out by carriers wearing white gloves.

Each player skates with the Cup around the ice — holding the Cup with two hands high over their heads. Most of the players lower the Cup to give it a long kiss.

Even the act of passing the Cup from one player to another is a production. As the receiving player gets the Cup, he lowers it slightly to get a grip and then lifts it over his head like Atlas lifting the sky.

The fans chant the names of the players as they skate around the ice.

I had a perfect spot to capture the players posing for a picture with the Cup.

Over the next several months, each player will have the opportunity to spend a day with the Cup. The players take it to their favorite bar, rink, restaurant or to schools or hospitals.

The Cup goes everywhere and has a lot of fun and touches so many lives. Everyone loves the Cup, and it has no enemies.

I remember the picture of Alex Ovechkin taking the Cup to a cemetery and sitting next to the gravestone of his late brother.

Steve Mayer, NHL president of Content and Events, said there is going to be an Amazon docuseries of the Cup’s travels this year.

Ira Kaufman, an Altoona native and traveling sports fan, hosts IRA on Sports on trueoldiesfla.com on Monday night from 7-8 p.m. It is available on Soundcloud & iTUNES, search Ira On Sports. His column appears occasionally in the Mirror.