On Wednesday, the NHL announced the home openers for all 32 teams, with the Florida Panthers traveling to Raleigh, NC, to watch the Carolina Hurricanes celebrate their recent 2026 Stanley Cup championship.
As great as that matchup sounds, especially on National TV with an early 5:00 pm start time, the Panthers then head out to the West Coast to play the San Jose Sharks, Anaheim Ducks, and Los Angeles Kings, all of whom are hosting their respective home openers.
Eventually, Florida will come home and begin their home schedule at Amerant Bank Arena against the Minnesota Wild. It’s an odd choice of a home-opening opponent, since the Panthers have only played three other Western Conference teams in this situation: Calgary (1995), Vancouver (2000), and Chicago (2009, 2021, and 2025).
Panthers have no pre-existing rivalry with the Wild
Dating back to the 2021-22 season, when the NHL returned to its usual divisional format and the schedule expanded to 82 games, the Panthers and Wild have played just 10 games, with Florida holding a slight edge at 6-4-0.
The countdown to home ice is on ⏰
— Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) July 15, 2026
See you in Sunrise on Oct. 10 as we take on the Minnesota Wild for our home opener! pic.twitter.com/Jzf9k0tnni
Recently, these games have been close encounters, including last season’s two meetings, which were decided by a single goal, 4-3 in overtime and then 3-2, with the teams splitting the meetings. Meanwhile, when the two teams played in 2024-25, they were blowouts for each team, with Florida winning 6-1 and then losing 5-1.
Surprisingly, the Panthers have not had much success against the Wild since the Wild's debut in 2000. Overall, Florida has a 14-20-1-2 record in 37 games, which features a more lopsided goal differential in Minnesota's favor at 117-87.
Florida and Minnesota don’t share a lot of history together
According to Hockey Reference, only 31 players and two goalies have ever played for both clubs, including star names like Vladimir Tarasenko, Eric Staal, Matt Cullen, and former Hart Trophy winner Jose Theodore. As of 2026, the most recent ones were Jeff Petry and Tarasenko, with Matt Kierstad being the only active skater on the list.
The first player to skate with the Panthers and the Wild was Filip Kuba, an eighth-round draft pick in 1995, who debuted with Florida in 1998 and ended up in Minnesota in 2000 via the Expansion Draft.
Unfortunately for Panthers fans, who hoped to see former players like Evan Rodrigues (New Jersey Devils) or Sergei Bobrovsky (Toronto Maple Leafs) on opening night, they will have to wait a few games before they can either cheer or boo former players who departed for other clubs.
Considering how important a home opener is, Florida should have hosted an Atlantic Division rival or another team from the Eastern Conference with a deep connection, such as the Pittsburgh Penguins or the Washington Capitals. Instead, they will welcome Quinn Hughes and the Wild.
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