Panthers develop new technique to deal with NHL officiating in playoffs.

Each and every year there are calls in the Stanley Cup playoffs that cause a little controversy and the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs have certainly been no exception to that rule.

The unfortunate reality is that we are dealing with human beings and human beings make mistakes, especially when it comes to a job as difficult as officiating at the National Hockey League level. Human beings are also emotional creatures and we can all let our emotions get the best of us at times, and the last thing any team in the NHL wants at this time of year is an angry referee on their bad side.

It would seem the Florida Panthers are taking that sentiment to its extreme this year with the Panthers going above and beyond to make sure they stay on the good side of the officials in the Eastern Conference Final. The strategy was revealed by ESPN's Emily Kaplan, who went into hilarious detail regarding just how far the Panthers have gone with their players.

"Speaking of officials," began Kaplan. "On the Panthers bench is pictures of the four officials and under it are the letters 'STFU' and that's a reminder to the players 'Don't complain to the refs, just focus on your game.'"

Not only is that very amusing but it also tickles my curiosity a little about the current state of those pictures. Do the Panthers rough them up when a call doesn't go there way? As funny as this retelling was from Kaplan herself, I bet it would be even funnier to hear some of the things the players on the Panthers' bench say to those pictures.