SUNRISE, Fla. — The spark in Leo Jungerman’s eyes when he watched his first hockey game was different.
He’d tried other sports like soccer and tennis, his father Alex said. But a hockey game featuring the Toronto Marlies — the Toronto Maple Leafs’ minor league team — is where an 8-year-old Leo’s love truly began for the sport.
“When we were watching the game, I spent a big chunk of the time looking at him,” Alex Jungerman said, “and it was kind of fascinating. So when he expressed interest in trying the game, I jumped right in.”
Alex, who had moved his family from Brazil to Florida that year in 2015, started looking for youth hockey programs for Leo, who knew nothing about hockey and couldn’t even skate.
That’s when he came across the Florida Panthers Learn to Play initiative — a program designed to introduce boys and girls to hockey while reducing barriers to entry for the sport. It’s part of the Panthers’ overall effort to grow the game in untapped communities, particularly the rapidly growing Hispanic market.
