‘Miami Mika’ Records First Hat-Trick in NHL Winter Classic History in Inaugural Outdoor Matchup in Miami.

MIAMI — The Florida Panthers and New York Rangers matched up at loanDepot Park, home to the MLB’s Miami Marlins, in front of a sold-out crowd at the NHL’s southernmost outdoor hockey game in the 17th Winter Classic on January 2nd.

The two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers hosted the Rangers for a crucial game 36 miles south of their usual home in Sunrise, Florida, in the second warmest game in NHL history. Both teams currently sit outside of the playoff bubble in a tightly contested Eastern Conference, increasing the stakes for this preliminary outdoor matchup in Miami.

loanDepot Park before the Winter Classic. Photo Credit: Brian Piendel

Both teams opted for all white outfits in their entrances in the ballpark, paying homage to the popular 80’s TV series “Miami Vice”, with the hometown Panthers arriving in sports cars.

Panthers players Seth Jones and Anton Lundell sporting ‘Miami Vice’ inspired outfits in pre-game press conference at Winter Classic. Photo credit: Brian Piendel

The pregame theatrics continued with popular Latin artist ‘Luis Fonsi’ performing in Spanish as both teams hit the ice, singing ‘Despacito’ as the Panthers entered. Artificial snow fell as the teams came out and a massive American flag filled up the ice during the national anthem.

‘Luis Fonsi’ performing as both teams hit the ice for the Winter Classic. Video Credit: Brian Piendel

It was all Ranger fans making noise when the final whistle blew at loanDepot Park as they cheered on their Blueshirts to a 5-1 win.

Both teams adjusted to the new ice surface with the roof open for the first time in the stadium. The Panthers were in the offensive zone for the beginning of the first period, drawing two penalties. The Rangers killed both penalties and were awarded a power play with over five minutes left in the first period.

Alexis Lafreniere skated down the left wing and threaded the needle to Mika Zibanejad, who buried the feed past Florida netminder Sergei Bobrovsky for a first period Rangers lead.

Over a minute later, as the first period was winding down, Artemi Panarin threw a shot on goal from the blueline, which found its way to the back of the net to make it 2-0 after the first 20 minutes.

Pop artist ‘Role Model’ performed two songs during the first intermission including hit song, “Sally, When the Wine Runs Out”, which saw star Panthers players Matthew Tkachuk and Sasha Barkov holding up the Stanley Cup in a surprise entrance.

‘Role Model’ performing during the first intermission at the Winter Classic. Video Credit: Brian Piendel

The Rangers came into the second period on a power play that carried over from the end of the first. Just 58 seconds into the period and as the man advantage expired, Vincent Trocheck brought the puck up the neutral zone and lost an edge but still managed to send a pass to Lafreniere who found Zibanejad on a two on one to make it 3-0.

The Rangers carried that lead into the third period with goalie Igor Shesterkin making key saves to keep the Panthers off the scoreboard. Early in the third, Sam Reinhart buried a rebound past Shesterkin on the power play to make it a two-goal game 3-1. With less than ten minutes left, the Rangers were awarded a power play of their own.

The man-advantage was dominant for New York, with Artemi Panarin scoring his second of the game to make it a 4-1 game. The Panthers pulled their goalie in the final two minutes, but Zibanejad scored the empty net goal for his third goal of the game.

Zibanejad’s hat-trick was the first in Winter Classic history. Along with two assists on the night, Zibanejad’s five-point game was also the first in a Winter Classic.

“It’s been pretty uneasy for us this year, but it was nice for us to get, not just for our teammates and family, but our fans too”, said Zibanejad after the game.

Zibanejad was awarded the “Cocoa Cup” as the game’s MVP for his five-point performance and the Rangers improved to 3-0-0 in Winter Classics and 6-0-0 in outdoor contests.

Ranger’s forwards Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin smiling at post-game press conference at Winter Classic. Photo Credit: Brian Piendel.

“For the players and families, it’s an opportunity to create lifelong memories…we’ll talk about these events 20 years from now”, said Ranger’s Head Coach Mike Sullivan.

“I think for us to have an opportunity to share it with those people [family and friends], events like this, is a great way for us to say thank you for everything they do and have done for us over the years to allow us the opportunity to participate in these events”.

Both teams will look to use this event to gain momentum for the rest of the season in a highly competitive Eastern Conference playoff race and the NHL will use it as proof it can play outdoor hockey anywhere.

*Newhouse student Benjamin Lefkowitz aided with the creation of this article*