"Happy to not be in Edmonton today” - Sam Reinhart reflects on Panthers' dominant Stanley Cup run (Exclusive)

Sam Reinhart and the Florida Panthers are champions once again. It's part of an incredible run that arguably began in 2021 when the Panthers traded for the forward.

Now that he's a two-time champion, he returned home to the local Raising Cane's, where he met fans, served them chicken, and discussed the title run. Sportskeeda was fortunate enough to be there to see and hear it all.

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Sam Reinhart is glad there's no Game 7

Had the Florida Panthers not taken care of business in Game 6, thanks to an unreal performance from Sam Reinhart, they'd be in Edmonton for Game 7 tonight. Instead, he's been on the celebration tour and stopped to talk at the Raising Cane's not too far from his home arena.

That Game 7 schedule loomed large for Reinhart, who opened up on what the difference was between this year's team and last year's. The 2024-25 title team dominated their way through the playoffs and dispatched the Edmonton Oilers.

Sam Reinhart came out to be with the fans (Image via Raising Cane's PR)

The 2023-24 team needed seven and nearly blew a three-games-to-none lead. Reinhart said it was that experience that paid dividends:

"I think being there before. Every time you go through something, you're that much more comfortable the next time. You just gotta enjoy the moment, it was such a battle again. I think we felt confident the whole time. Just happy to not be in Edmonton today."

The difference in the scoreline was three goals in Game 6 as Reinhart's four-goal outburst essentially won the Panthers the game and the title.

Reinhart admitted he doesn't remember much of the scoring barrage:

"A little bit of a blackout. Just feeling the energy, kind of in the zone. That was probably the fastest game I've been a part of. It was a pretty cool experience."

Another Florida team, the Tampa Bay Lightning, went back-to-back in 2020 and 2021. Before that, the Pittsburgh Penguins repeated in 2016 and 2017. But you'd have to go all the way back to the '91 and '92 Penguins to find another repeat champion.

Reinhart said the struggle to do it twice in a row was sometimes easier the second time, but often much more difficult. He admitted that the "mental grind" was a bigger challenge this year, especially towards the end of the regular season.

The former Buffalo Sabres star said:

"There's different sports throughout the year that are really challenging.Partly because of how tough it is. You are so tired at the end of the day, but if you keep pushing, you're able to persevere."

That mental grind is something Reinhart believes the Florida Panthers coaching staff is equipped to handle. He gave all the credit to them, adding that he didn't have a personal mental coach to help him on that grind.

Sam Reinhart lifting the Stanley Cup (Imagn)

He even added that much of it is physical and If he can get his body right for the long season, then his mind will follow. He'll need to lean on that if he and the Panthers are to do the unthinkable and win three in a row.

The 1980-1983 New York Islanders were the last to do that. Sam Reinhart said it would be "pretty cool," but isn't getting ahead of himself:

"Last year, when we won, we didn't think about it. That's what we're going to do right now. We're certainly enjoying this one. If we've learned anything, when the time comes, we'll be prepared and we'll be ready and motivated to do it again to put our best foot forward."

For now, though, it's all about that second title.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash