On Feb. 14, 2018, 17 people died in the tragic shootings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. The Florida Panthers play their games less than 15 miles away, so it was no surprise that Roberto Luongo and others were especially shaken by those awful events.
The Panthers took steps to honor those lost and most affected by the Parkland shootings one year later on Thursday, with the team holding a moment of silence and Luongo wearing a special mask in honor of the school.
The team also has a more extended ceremony planned for Sunday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens.
Here’s footage of the moment of silence, via Fox Sports Florida:
The @FlaPanthers honor those who were effected by the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Please take a moment of silence to honor those who were lost.#OneTerritory #NHL #MSDStrong pic.twitter.com/bXjCL4TOeE
— Bally Sports Florida & Bally Sports Sun (@BallySportsFL) February 15, 2019
Luongo’s mask was a fantastic touch for someone with personal ties to the Parkland community.
#MSDStrong pic.twitter.com/m0eF0VzSG1
— Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) February 14, 2019
The Panthers Foundation is also running a charitable campaign where people can text “Give 5" to the number 74747 during Thursday’s game against the Flames and Sunday (Feb. 17)'s game against the Canadiens. You can read more about that here.