Florida Panthers championship provides a harsh reminder to Dolphins fans

The Stanley Cup playoffs are over and the Florida Panthers are reminding Miami Dolphins fans that their championship drought needs to end. Is this something that's going to happen soon thanks to Mike McDaniel and company?

On Monday night, the Panthers put an exclamation point on their 2024 season with a Stanley Cup victory. After going up by three games in the series, they allowed the Edmonton Oilers to climb back into the series and force a Game 7. Now that the series is over, though, the Dolphins need to step in and take back the city they once dominated.

The Florida Panthers winning the Stanley Cup puts pressure on the Miami Dolphins

In 2003, the Florida Marlins, now the Miami Marlins, won the World Series. Following their victory, they didn't return to the postseason until 2020. The Miami Heat last won a championship in the 2012-2013 season when they capped back-to-back NBA championships.

With the Panthers winning things in dramatic fashion, the Dolphins are the only team of the four major South Florida sports squads not to win a championship since the calendar turned to the century. This is something that must change.

The Dolphins are getting closer, but they can't be taken seriously as a contender for the Super Bowl until they advance in the playoffs. Miami has not won a playoff game in 24 years. In 2000, the Dave Wannstedt-led Dolphins beat the Colts in overtime, but lost the following week to the Raiders. Since then, the Dolphins have only been to the playoffs five times. They have not advanced out of the Wild Card round in any of those five seasons and have won the division only once, doing so in 2008.

Will 2024 be different for the Dolphins and Chris Grier? Maybe, but they have to get through a tough end-of-season schedule and the advance beyond the Wild Card Round first.