The Florida Panthers have swapped suits for bathrobes in a quirky new winning tradition. During a recent two-game trip to Finland, where the Panthers won both games, the team wore personalized robes— a nod to Finnish sauna culture. Superstitions run strong in hockey, so the robes have stuck. The Panthers arrived for Thursday’s game against Nashville wearing their robes and won again, defeating Nashville 6-2.
Forward Matthew Tkachuk and captain Aleksander Barkov rallied the team to keep the robe streak alive, much to everyone’s amusement. “While it’s working for us, we’ll keep going,” Barkov said. General manager Bill Zito credited the idea to Lucy Tallas, wife of goaltending coach Robb Tallas, who suggested the robes.
Head coach Paul Maurice, however, opted for a suit, joking, “Nobody needs to see that.” The Panthers’ “robe era” is just a fun way to add some team spirit to a long season.