What Paul Maurice’s contract extension means long-term for the Florida Panthers
Paul Maurice, in his usual self-deprecating way, tried to deflect the big news that came out prior to the Florida Panthers’ 5-1 loss to the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday that he signed a multi-year extension with the team.
“I’m just thankful, and hopeful, I guess, that the ink dried on that thing,’’ Maurice said postgame after the loss.
And then, he reflected.
“It is an honor,” Maurice then said, “and I am very thankful and appreciative to the Viola family not just for their generosity, but for the investment that they have made here over the years. To have such an incredible program — what’s that line? — I have been born on third so I can’t brag about the triple I just hit. This is a really good program when I showed up, really good people. We have had success together and a lot of people have made that possible — the players, first and foremost.’’
The Panthers did not disclose financial information on Maurice’s contract or the length of the deal. Maurice reportedly made just under $4 million with his first deal with the club, which was entering its final year.
Maurice said he “hadn’t thought of” nor was he “particularly concerned about” his contract.
“There was really no negotiation,” Maurice said. “They made me a really nice offer, we shook hands and I said thank you.”
Considering what Maurice has done in two years with the Panthers, it was hard to see the franchise doing anything else but making sure Maurice stayed around for the long run.
Florida has reached the Stanley Cup Final in both of Maurice’s first two seasons with the team — losing in five games to the Vegas Golden Knights in 2023 before winning it all in 2024 by beating the Edmonton Oilers in seven games. Florida has gone 98-59-15 in the regular season with him behind the bench.
Maurice, in his 27th season as an NHL coach, has coached the second-most games all-time in NHL history, with 1,856. He trails just Scotty Bowman, who coached 2,141 games.
“Paul has resolutely led our organization to unprecedented success during his relatively short tenure in South Florida,” Panthers president of hockey operations and general manager Bill Zito said in a press release. “He is a superb communicator and leader for our staff and players, possessing a keen strategic mind for the game. We are excited for Paul and his staff to continue to keep the Florida Panthers as a destination franchise for the foreseeable future.”
And it took some convincing from Zito to get Maurice to take the job.
Maurice had resigned from his role as the Winnipeg Jets’ head coach 29 games into the 2021-22 season and thought he was done at that point. He had accomplished so much in his career that he was at peace with what what he had done with this career.
But a phone call Zito while he was on a fishing trip changed things. The chat evolved to a zoom call and then a visit with Zito’s family and then a day at the office meeting people.
Maurice was intrigued, both by the opportunity to coach a team that had a foundation set and the chance to work with Zito, who has “a gift” in bringing out the best in those he works with.
That experience has only gotten magnified over his two-plus years with the club.
“That’s the reason why,” Maurice said now, reflecting on the journey so far, “I’m interested in coaching the Florida Panthers for as long as they’ll have me.”
And now Maurice becomes the latest member of the Panthers’ core to be signed to a long-term deal.
Florida has nine players signed through at least the 2026-27 season: Forward Carter Verhaeghe through 2032-33, forward Sam Reinhart and defenseman Gustav Forsling through 2031-32, forwards Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk and Anton Lundell through 2029-2030, defenseman Dmitry Kulikov through 2027-28, and forwards Evan Rodrigues and Eetu Luostarinen through 2026-27. The team is reportedly in contract negotiations with forward Sam Bennett as well.
“This is our team,” said Kulikov, who is in his second stint with the Panthers and his second stint being coached by Maurice. “We build a team around the core, and the coaching staff is a big part of what we’ve accomplished last year. He’s a big motivator. He feels the room really well and knows how to approach the whole group.”
Added Verhaeghe: “He’s been our leader for the last couple years, and going to two Stanley Cup Finals. I’m just learning from him every day. It’s awesome. He’s definitely helped me grow as a player, and he holds everyone accountable. He’s just such a great coach. Going forward to have him locked up and to even grow as a coach and grow with us, it’s definitely going to be definitely a good time for the organization.”
A stable time, too, something the Panthers haven’t truly had in their franchise’s history.
The Panthers have never had a coach last longer than three seasons. Jacques Martin (2005-2008) and Peter DeBoer (2008-2011) have the most regular-season games coached in Panthers history at 246. Maurice will match that at season’s end — and also has at least the 45 playoff games from his first two seasons with Florida under his belt as well.
But before Maurice’s arrival, it looked like Joel Quenneville was going to be the coach to bring stability to the franchise. Florida hired the veteran coach ahead of the 2019-2020 season and he led the Panthers to a pair of playoff appearances and a 7-0-0 record to start the 2021-22 season before abruptly resigning over his role in the Chicago Blackhawks’ mishandling of a 2010 sexual allegation, which was made by then-Chicago left wing Kyle Beach against then-Blackhawks video coach Brad Aldrich. Andrew Brunette took over as interim coach and led the team to a Presidents’ Trophy but a second-round playoff exit before Zito opted to hire Maurice in the ensuing offseason.
“That was obviously a crazy transition,” said Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad, who has played under six head coaches in his 10-plus seasons with Florida. “Everything that happened and how it played out was [expletive] insane. It was crazy. But we end up with one of the smartest minds I think hockey has ever seen. I obviously can’t speak for outside of my 10 years of experience, but I feel like that’s a decent sample size to say that. Obviously I haven’t been around for 30 years like he has, but an incredible hockey mind. His recall of past experiences that relate to our situations on a day-to-day basis are uncanny. It’s incredible. Whenever you get a chance with him, one-on-one and he gives you those kind of insights, it’s really cool. I’m not the biggest hockey historian in the world, so when he tells you that kind of [stuff], it’s fun to listen to and and it’s been a treat to be coached by him.”
And the Panthers will continue to be coached by him for the foreseeable future.
This story was originally published October 23, 2024 at 3:02 PM.
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