Sam Reinhart’s NHL story didn’t start in Florida. Rather, he was at Buffalo, doing his thing, putting in the grind, and just waiting for someone to notice. And it was the Panthers who came calling. “Sam is a gifted and versatile talent that will play a key role for our team in the coming seasons,” the Panthers GM Bill Zito said in an official announcement after trading for the former Buffalo Sabres center in 2021.

Four years down the line, and Sam Reinhart has had a hand in the biggest moments of the South Florida franchise as the Panthers have achieved everything that they have ever wanted to: the Stanley Cup. Twice, that too. And now, before they start all over again, the Panthers are looking back – and this time, the story features Sam Reinhart and his journey to becoming a champion.

The Panthers uploaded a video on their YouTube channel on August 24 titled “Sam Reinhart | Journey to the NHL”. The 17-minute video starts with the Canadian center getting drafted 2nd overall to the Sabres. And it finished with the 29-year-old looking back at the moment when he scored the winning goal to clinch the Panthers’ first-ever Stanley Cup. As the Panthers center reflected on the moment, he was asked, “Did you dream about that as a kid?” Reinhart answered, “Absolutely. I mean, that’s the game you’re playing in the backyard or in your playroom … that’s the moment.”

The Canadian continued, “Not many people have that opportunity. You could play 20 years and never have that opportunity.” And Reinhart wasn’t just talking about destiny. The goal was scored in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final (SCF). That’s as close as it can get. Even the game ended 2-1, meaning that his goal was the margin that decided who won the Stanley Cup and who lost.

Since 2014, only two instances of the SCF have gone to Game 7, the other time being in 2019. So, to be in that moment and get the chance to win it all for his team is a privilege for Sam Reinhart. And he remembered how it all went down. In fact, the Panthers forward had even gotten the feeling that his goal would be the decider. “The way it was being played, you know, I knew right when I went in, that could have been it.” Such a powerful feeling to have, isn’t it?

He must have been feeling on top of the world. “It’s something I’m going to hang on to forever,” Sam Reinhart said. And he remembered “taking the Cup out of the case for the first time in Vancouver,” in front of the family, and there it was – his name engraved on the trophy. “You see Reinhart on there, and you’re going to see that forever.”

Moreover, he played his due part in it. Just like he did in 2025, too. And this time, he even became a part of a rare history while winning it for the Panthers.

Sam Reinhart, the man for big Stanley Cup Finals moments

It was not as close in 2025. The SCF got wrapped up in Game 6 only, although again at the Amerant Bank Arena. The Panthers were more dominant this time than they were in 2024. Paul Maurice’s men were finally playing with an identity and authority that wasn’t seen in the previous year. Game 5 on the road was a 5-2 demolition of an opposition that had Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

And in Game 6, for the Panthers, the honors were started by Sam Reinhart and finished by him, too. The game finished 5-1. Reinhart scored 4 times. It doesn’t matter that some of them came when the Oilers didn’t have a goaltender on ice. It was a do-or-die game, and the Oilers were trailing long before they took their netminder off the ice for an extra outfield player.

Well, it didn’t make any difference. The Panthers still outscored their opponent. And with 4 goals, Sam Reinhart became the first player in 103 years to score 4 goals in a Stanley Cup-clinching game. As we said, made for the biggest occasion. The 29-year-old also became the first player in 68 years to score 4 goals in a SCF game since Maurice Richard of the Montreal Canadiens did it in 1957. Bill Zito’s words about his 2021 signing have come true and then some.