from Damien Cox of Sportsnet,

The Florida Panthers can’t lay claim to being from The Happiest Place on Earth.

A little amusement park to the north of them owns that nickname.

But right now, being a Panther may be being part of The Happiest Hockey Team on Earth. Yes, winning always makes the smiles emerge like a six-year-old going on the “It’s a Small World” ride for the first time, but there’s more to it than stringing a bunch of victories together.

The Florida franchise is 23 years old and, oddly, it feels at the moment rather like all the players were born back in the same year Wayne Huizenga founded the team and are now growing up together as the organization finally, and really, gets its act together.

“The last six weeks have been awesome,” said head coach Gerard Gallant.

The team hasn’t lost since Dec. 12th and won its 10th straight on Tuesday night, 5-1 over the swooning Buffalo Sabres, to solidify its hold on first place in the Atlantic Division. The fans, inspired by what they’re seeing, are coming out in bigger numbers after years of awful attendance figures.

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