For Panthers, regular season success didn’t lead to Cup run

By TIM REYNOLDS
AP Sports Writer

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — There will be a Presidents’ Trophy banner hanging over the Florida Panthers’ home ice next season. The team’s media relations department will spend its summer rewriting the record book because tons of pages need updating. And the earliest that the Panthers will again have to hear about a 26-year drought between playoff series wins is in 2048. On those levels, it was a tremendous season for the Panthers. Of course, none of that mattered after getting swept 4-0 by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference semifinals.