Omar Kelly: Which South Florida team is positioned to bring this city its ninth championship?

In classic South Florida style, the Florida Panthers took the team’s championship celebration to the beach.

The Miami Heat used Biscayne Boulevard and then convened at the arena the team won all three of its championships in.

The Miami Marlins used the Intercoastal and Riverwalk in Las Olas, Fla., then took the celebration to the stadium they shared with the Miami Dolphins to celebrate its 2003 championship with South Florida.

And the Panthers, which beat Edmonton Oilers in a seven-game Stanley Cup Final series earlier this week, graced the streets of Fort Lauderdale Beach, celebrating the franchise’s first championship, and South Florida’s eight in the four major spots.

If the Miami Dolphins finally got the franchise’s act together, winning a Super Bowl in the coming seasons — think three-year window — it’s safe to wonder where that parade would be held?

Would the Dolphins take it to the beach too, Miami-Dade or Broward’s downtown, or maybe they would grace the streets of Miami Gardens before culminating the celebration at Hard Rock Stadium?

Dolphins CEO Tom Garfinkel might need to give a parade route some deep thought because the Dolphins, who were 11-6 last season, have just as good a shot of getting to the top of its sport as every other team in the city.

If the Panthers manage to keep the 2024 team together, and can handle the pressures of being the hunted, it’s possible coach Paul Maurice could shepherd his hockey team back to the top of the mountain.

The Tampa Bay Lightning, our Florida neighbors, were the last NHL team to win back-to-back titles in 2020 and 2021. And before them it was the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016 and 2017, so repeating is in the realm of possibilities.

The Miami Heat did it during the Lebron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh era of the franchise back in 2012 and 2013.

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