Hesitant Toward Florida Panthers Locker Room, Transfer Star Clears Feelings Over Coach Paul Maurice

Paul Maurice has come into the spotlight of late for a subtle and unexpected facet to his personality: humor. Dry, yes, but humor nonetheless. Maurice went a little viral after the Florida Panthers’ game 4 loss when he was asked how he felt about the 3 goals that were conceded in the game and said, “I didn’t like the last two at all. This gap was horsesh-t.” It’s funny because Bobrovsky was not on the ice for the last two; they were empty netters, and also funny because Carolina still faces elimination with the next two games, so Florida’s coach can make a few jokes here and there, right? So, funny, sure, but is everyone finding them funny?

On a recent TNT podcast, Canadiens hockey legend Jeff O’Neill didn’t take too well to Maurice’s overconfidence with his humor and subtle dissing of the Canes. O’Neil said of the moment, “He’s gone too far, like he just—he knows what his capabilities are, and he’s gone too far with it.” It’s true, though; Maurice literally joined the Florida Panthers as manager in 2022 and since then they have seen one Stanley Cup final and one Stanley Cup and are most likely looking to see another final, if not cup, again this year. So Maurice can certainly afford to crack a few jokes here and there, but how is his team, who still have to do the work of winning the games, taking it?

Seth Jones was asked in a recent postgame interview how he handled Maurice’s humor, especially with respect to the latest comment about the empty netters, and Jones, a recent Blackhawks transfer, replied, “Um, yeah, it’s different than what I’ve had. Of course, I think he knows how to really take the temperature of the group and the situation of a group and, you know, he can have a meeting where he’s very intense, you know, whether he’s calling guys out or calling the team out, but he’s also very good at throwing a joke in there, you know, throwing a funny clip in there when we’re doing video.”

Over the course of these playoffs, fans have had a vivid picture painted of the Florida Panthers’ locker room culture, and now we’re getting an inside scoop on their coaching culture too. One has to wonder, is this really what makes this team so strong?

What is it really like being coached by Paul Maurice and on the Florida Panthers?

So, we know the coach, Paul Maurice, has a funny bone that he trades off with being intense at times. With Jones adding, “He’s very smart. I think he understands, like I said, what the team needs at any given time and I don’t think he gets too high or too low based on certain situations. He’s very, um, you know, very flatlined at times, and he understands, you know, little moments are always learning experiences; he always uses that so whether we win or we lose, we can always learn, we can always grow and can always be better.” So he’s funny, intense and a good teacher; this we know.

We also know General Manager Bill Zito spends a lot of time in the locker room, socializing with the team and checking up on people frequently. From multiple accounts, including players like Bennet and Tkachuk, we know that Brad Marchand, the team’s latest acquisition, fits right in with Florida’s culture of support and healthy chirping, and now we’ve also got some insight on the man between the poles, Sergei Bobrovsky.

In the same postgame interview, Carter Verhaeghe, who was seated next to Seth Jones, commented on Bobrovsky’s temperament. Apparently the two-time Vezina Trophy winner is extremely supportive too, with Verhaeghe saying, “Every time you’re skating by the net, every time you block a shot, every time you buck sky out, or you’re around that net in between whistles, he’s always giving you a tap; he’s always, uh you know saying good job and things like that.” Verhaeghe went on to add, about Florida’s trusty old goaltender who has played a huge part in the team’s success this year, “He gives us so much confidence in front of him, you know, you just want to play hard for a guy like that. You see his work ethic every day and, um, you see how he comes prepared for the rink, uh, you know, not only physically but mentally as well.”

So Florida definitely sounds like they have a healthy balance of all things going for them team-wise: Paul Maurice’s humor, Bill Zito’s wisdom, Sergei Bobrovsky’s inspiration, and some dry sarcasm all around when the time calls for it. Whether or not this will help them hold onto their Stanley Cup for one more year is yet to be determined.