"Believe in yourself": Carter Verhaeghe opens up about his journey to reaching another Stanley Cup Finals

Florida Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe is only one of the two players on the current team who have won a Stanley Cup in the past. He won the Cup in his very first playoff season with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2019-20. The player recently shared a motivational message for youngsters aspiring to follow their dreams.

On Friday, Sportsnet's Gene Principe asked Verhaeghe to share a few inspirational words for children watching the interview. He mentioned Verhaeghe's journey from the ECHL to winning a Stanley Cup and potentially winning another. Principe then asked him to share a message that can inspire young people to keep fighting for their goals.

“I think believe in yourself,” Carter Verhaeghe said. “I think a lot of times, with the circumstances, you can't control a lot of stuff."

“And whether someone thinks you're good enough or not, or whether you're getting the opportunity or not, or you're a high traffic, or you're not a high traffic, you're not going to get as many opportunities, and people are going to look at you a certain way.”

He then mentioned the necessity of believing in oneself and continually striving to improve. Verhaeghe advised against becoming ‘stagnant’ and encouraged the youngsters to always keep pushing forward.

“And I think it's staying with yourself, and believing in yourself, and always pushing yourself to get better every day. Never stuck, never be stagnant kind of thing, never stuck in a situation.”

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Carter Verhaeghe will return to Edmonton where he lifted his first Stanley Cup

Now that the Florida Panthers will face the Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup Finals, the series will bring back championship memories for Carter Verhaeghe.

Due to the pandemic, Verhaeghe and the Lightning celebrated their victory after defeating the Dallas Stars at Rogers Place in Edmonton. He now has the chance to repeat the feat with the Panthers.

Reflecting on his first Stanley Cup win, Carter Verhaeghe described the experience as particularly special, especially since his father was able to be there despite the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Obviously it was really special,’’ said Verhaeghe in an earlier interview this month. “I actually had my dad there, too, which was awesome. It was a Covid year, but it was definitely a special memory there.” [H/T Florida Hockey Now]

He recalled the experience of playing in the "bubble" at Rogers Place in Edmonton:

“We were in the bubble there for about a month, so I know the surrounding area pretty well. It was a lot of fun, definitely nothing but good memories of being there.”

Now Carter Verhaeghe will be looking to hoist another Stanley Cup in Edmonton, this time with the Florida Panthers.