League honors MSD community
Luongo, Barkov don’t take home awards
That the Florida Panthers’ Aleksander Barkov and Roberto Luongo didn’t win an award Wednesday night was a footnote during the league’s ceremony that also included a tribute to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas hockey team and victims of the school shooting in February.
Barkov finished third for the Lady Byng Trophy to Vegas’ William Karlsson and Buffalo’s Ryan O’Reilly. New Jersey’s Brian Boyle won the Bill Masterton Trophy, an award Luongo was also a finalist for.
The league’s tribute at the annual awards show to Marjory Stoneman Douglas was part of the NHL’s remembrance of three tragic events this past year, also honoring responders of the Las Vegas shooting and survivors of the Humboldt Broncos bus crash.
Panthers president and CEO Matt Caldwell joined Luongo and Barkov to represent the club in Las Vegas. News footage from Feb. 14 rolled, as did clips from the team’s tribute before a Feb. 22 game against Washington.
Luongo introduced four members of the Stoneman Douglas hockey team, including captain Matthew Hauptman, who thanked the Panthers and
NHL for their help following the shooting.
“You were there for us and we truly appreciate your support,” Hauptman said.
The Eagles helped present the Calder Trophy, given to the best rookie in the NHL, to Mathew Barzal from the New York Islanders.
Both Luongo and Barkov wore red MSD ribbons on their suits.
“I know a lot of people have moved on from it, but back home, it’s still a daily thing for us,” Luongo told reporters in Las Vegas on Tuesday. “We hear about it every day. We talk about it every day, whether it’s on TV or you walk into a store, it’s all over the place. We try to do as much as we can to help out.
“Obviously, we feel like sometimes it’s not enough. We try to heal as a community back home. We’ve been taking some steps, and it’ll take a long time before we’re back to where we were, I think.”
Luongo’s candidacy for the Masterton (given “to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey”) centered around his response to the shooting that killed 17 people and injured 17 more. Before the Panthers’ first home game since the shooting, Luongo delivered a passionate speech that praised the heroic actions of teachers and students.
Luongo said Tuesday that he was proud to watch the “March for our Lives” that students organized in Washington, D.C., in March.
“Those kids are working extremely hard making sure that their voices are heard, and the strength that they’re showing is unbelievable,” Luongo said. “Just proud to be part of that community and the fact that they’re going at it so hard. They’re relentless. They’re not stopping and it’s beautiful to see a generation like that knows what they want and are going for it.”
The MSD club hockey team won the Florida state championship in the days following the shooting, punching a ticket to the national tournament. After the tragedy, the Panthers and the Eagles became linked.
The Panthers invited the team to their locker room. Opposing players Craig Anderson (Ottawa) and Shayne Gostisbehere (Philadelphia) hosted the team in visits to Sunrise. The Panthers surprised the team with the Stanley Cup after a practice in the BB&T Center and also flew the Eagles on their private plane to and from Minnesota for nationals . ...