SUNRISE — Brad Marchand has been a Panther for only three months, but he feels like he belongs in South Florida.

Three days after lifting the Stanley Cup, the veteran winger handed out Brad Marchand-branded Blizzards — the source of a new tradition during the postseason — at a packed Sunrise Dairy Queen on Friday morning.

Wearing a Dairy Queen-themed hat and shirt, Marchand joyously took pictures, signed autographs and handed out cups of the chocolate “chirp” cookie dough Blizzard that the fast food chain temporarily renamed in his honor (the “Brad Blizzard”), working behind the counter and drive-thru window.

“It’s been incredible the last couple days,” Marchand said. “But, I think, this tops it all off. This legit brings back to my childhood, and it’s been an incredible few days. So much love down here in Florida. There’s always been a lot of talk about it not being a hockey city, but it’s pretty evident that there’s so much love down here for the game of hockey, and it’s pretty incredible to be a part of it.”

Friday’s trip to Dairy Queen is the latest in a line of celebrations around South Florida. From the arena, the Panthers traveled to the now-traditional early morning party at the Elbo Room on Fort Lauderdale Beach. On Thursday night, the team then partied at Miami nightclub E11ven, where center and pending free agent Sam Bennett announced he was staying with the team.

On Friday, Sam Reinhart went to a Raising Cane’s in Tamarac while Marchand visited Dairy Queen. The line stretched around the restaurant with fans hoping to get a glimpse of the Florida star. One fan even showed up in a — presumably old — shirt that featured Bennett holding a Photoshopped baby Marchand.

“It’s been special from a fan base that that was not very fond of me, you know?” Marchand said. “And I wasn’t very fond of them. It’s done a full 180 and I feel like they completely embraced me and allowed me to be part of this team, city and (I am) very appreciative for it.”

Marchand said he did not know what to expect when Boston traded him to Florida at the trade deadline. The Bruins had been the only team he had ever played for. But now, Marchand told a fan while signing an autograph, “I feel like I’m home.”

“When coming in I had no idea what to expect,” Marchand said. “I’ve never been through a situation like this before, changing teams in the middle of a season. But it’s been some of the best few months I’ve ever had in my career, and it’s been an incredible group down here. I’ve loved every second of it, so hopefully, it can continue.”

Marchand has become an integral part of the Panthers on the ice and off. He spent time Thursday night posting photos on Instagram of all the players who had come to Florida from different teams, saying thank you to the teams that let those players go before they joined the Panthers.

“We were just kind of sitting at dinner and kind of reminiscing on how we all got to this point. And we all have our own story about maybe not being the happiest about the situation at the time and kind of how things played out for certain guys,” Marchand said. “But we all got here and without all of those ups and downs that guys went through, whether they got here by choice or not by choice, because they got traded or whatever, it all played a part in this team winning this Cup.

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Panthers star Brad Marchand Serves Up “The Brad Blizzard” at a Dairy Queen in Sunrise on Friday, June 20, 2025. (Carline Jean/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

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“And those are things at the time that you don’t always look at and want to happen, or you’re not happy about it in the moment, or you don’t really understand why things are going a certain way. But you know, once it all plays out, I mean, it’s just so cliché, but everything happens for a reason. And all those moments, all those teams making bad decisions to get rid of guys, and our team making incredible decisions to bring them all in, it all played a part in us winning the Cup.

“So it just kind of came together last night. We were joking about it, and I like to have some fun, so I let everyone know how much I appreciate it.”

The next question is whether the Panthers will let Marchand go. Marchand, who will be a free agent on July 1, had a simple message for Florida general manager Bill Zito.

“Give me a contract!” Marchand said.

Why Dairy Queen?

A Carolina fan posted on social media that he saw Marchand and other Panthers players eating Blizzards at a Raleigh Dairy Queen while the team was in town for the Eastern Conference Finals against the Hurricanes in late May.

The team’s link to the dessert really caught fire when video caught Marchand eating something with a spoon between periods during Game 3, and Marchand jokingly told a reporter he was eating a Blizzard.

Social media filled with people amused and outraged that a professional athlete would eat ice cream during a crucial playoff game.

Later, Marchand admitted it was honey he was eating, not a Blizzard, but it was too late. Marchand and the Panthers were linked to Dairy Queen in the minds of the public forever.

Originally Published: June 20, 2025 at 12:43 PM EDT