“That’s kind of what the playoffs are all about, the highs and lows of it,” Evan Bouchard made it clear that the Stanley Cup Finals rematch with the Florida Panthers is as high-stakes as it gets. However, as Game 3 waited for the puck to drop at the Amerant Bank Arena, it seemed like the playoffs also became the perfect stage for some to celebrate their special day.

The Miami Heat’s 3-time NBA All-Star Bam Adebayo was entrusted with a special responsibility to kick off Game 3 between the Florida Panthers and the Edmonton Oilers. The 2x Olympic gold medalist basketball center was given the honors of banging the legendary Panthers drums to get the ball rolling as the Stanley Cup Finals returned to Miami. But he wasn’t the only member of the city’s popular basketball team to show up tonight.

Miami Heat reporter Will Manso shared, via an X post from June 9, how Adebayo was joined by a teammate at the Amerant Bank Arena. “Udonis Haslem spending his birthday here at the Panthers game. Bam Adebayo will soon bang the pre-game drum,” Manso wrote in his post as the accompanying image showed the two Heat stars commemorating Haslem’s special day just beside the Florida drums.

Adebayo was probably brought in by the Florida Panthers as a way to show their national pride. After the Oilers got singer Robert Clark, one of Edmonton’s own, to sing the Canadian national anthem in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals, the Cats got the 2x Olympic gold medalist Adebayo, the Heat’s power forward, to start off tonight’s game. However, for Haslem, it was something even greater than his teammate’s honor that got him to smile constantly at the Amerant Bank Arena.

“I’m loving it,” Udonis was heard saying in a video uploaded by NBC 6’s Giselle Espinales on Monday, “Who would have ever thought that the state of Florida would have a dynasty hockey team? I mean, three years in a row? Hopefully, another opportunity to go back-to-back.” Standing beside Adebayo inside the players’ tunnel, Haslem further claimed that if the Florida Panthers manage to retain the Stanley Cup in Miami, it will definitely be a special Christmas this year.

And after tonight’s game, both the Miami Heat stars’ hopes of an early Christmas might not be too far-fetched either.

The Florida Panthers salute the Heat stars’ loyalty

The Florida Panthers posted an incredible 6-1 victory at home in Game 3. Brad Marchand opened the scoring for the defending champ just 56 seconds into the match, and once again got his name into the history books. The Oilers, justifiably, were shocked and couldn’t stop coughing up penalties one after the other.  Carter Verhaeghe extended a lead with a goal in the power play with 2:15 left in the first period. Edmonton’s Corey Perry scored a goal in the second period to give the team some hope, only to get snuffed out almost immediately.

Sam Reinhart came in hard and put the puck past the Oilers’ netminder, Stuart Skinner, for the third time of the night. Sam Bennett capitalized on the momentum and made it 4-1 soon after. Bennett now has 14 postseason goals to his name, more than any Florida Panthers player in history. The hosts continued their superior play in the third period.

Ensuring Reinhart’s incredible pass didn’t go to waste, Aaron Ekblad planted the puck in Edmonton’s net once more to make things 5-1. Cue, a goalie change. Skinner was swapped for Calvin Pickard. But that didn’t warrant a change of the tides. Pouncing at a 5-on-3 situation, Evan Rodrigues scored the final goal for the Florida Panthers as the last nail in the Oilers’ coffin.

What a game! You can bet your kidney that both Haslem and Adebayo went home with beaming smiles on their faces. But can the Oilers find it in them to erase those gleeful looks of the Panthers fans when Game 4 returns to the same venue from today? Tell us your predictions for the next bout between these heavyweights in the comments!