Paul Fenton of the Florida Panthers brings the Stanley Cup to Cape Cod

BREWSTER — An elementary-aged boy within earshot of Paul Fenton said that, someday, he wants his name on the Stanley Cup, just like Fenton.

Fenton turned the boy's way, and said, "You gotta dream. You gotta dream, and go get it."

That advice worked just fine with Fenton, who is living proof of it.

On Saturday in Brewster, Fenton brought the Stanley Cup to Captains Golf Course to allow fans to spend a little time with him and the trophy. With Fenton as the Senior Advisor to the General Manager of the Florida Panthers, their win allowed him some personal time with it. And, as mentioned, his name is on it now.

Pretty cool, and you could see his time with the Cup fulfilled all expectations.

"(That's been my mantra) since I started playing when I was four-years-old," Fenton said of his advice. "I loved it. I wanted to play this game, to be able to win. I watched Bobby Orr win with the Bruins. Obviously, my idol, like everybody else in our area when I was growing up. To see that, I always wanted to have that ability to win, and now having been in it for so long, we finally got that."

The 64-year-old Fenton played high school hockey at Springfield Cathedral, then moved on to Boston University. He played in the NHL, and his executive career brought him to the Panthers. But the Cape Cod connection is that he and his wife, Nona, bought a house in Brewster 28 years ago. The Fenton family has summered there ever since.

"We're from Springfield originally, but moved out of there a while ago," Fenton said. "We've had a house down here for 28 years. Just a great community. The people here at the golf course are just fantastic. I've been a member here for a while. We thought that this would be a real casual way of bringing it to the towns, to the people that are here. We know that it's Bruins country. I grew up as a Bruins fan in the 70s, but getting paid by somebody, it changed pretty drastically."

Fenton's son, PJ, is 38 and is a pro scout for the Panthers. He took turns lifting the Cup in various pictures Saturday, and had a lot of fun with the proceedings.

"Incredible honor," PJ Fenton said. "Obviously, we're more on the hockey ops side, so we didn't play the games. But having the chance to have this here, and share it with the fans, whether they're Bruins or Panthers fans, or any other team, is cool. It's such a historical trophy. It makes everybody happy, puts a smile on everybody's face. It's pretty special."

You couldn't wipe the smile off Fenton's face, as he enjoyed going back and forth with the various fans. It was just what he hoped it would be.

"i think it's hockey, in general," that is responsible for the genial nature of it, Fenton said. "Our sport has a down-to-earth-type of feeling that everybody appreciates where they came from, how hard it was to get there. It's nice to give something back. I'm thrilled that I've got people from Springfield, I've got family, friends, and the memories of our relatives that aren't here anymore. To me, this is special. I've been 42 years without winning. I've been in professional hockey for 42 years. Finally, I got the opportunity to win. To be able to share it is just incredible."

At one point, he asked a handful of kids if any of them played hockey. All three did, then Fenton wanted to know out of where. After they answered, he quipped, "You any good?"

Adam Kurkjian covers high school sports for the Cape Cod Times . You can contact him at akurkjian@gannett.com and follow him on X at @AdamKurkjian.

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Paul Fenton of the Florida Panthers brings the Stanley Cup to Cape Cod