Paul Maurice Confesses Nearly Retiring Before Joining Florida Panthers Stanley Cup Quest: “Was Burnt”

The Florida Panthers have scripted history. Winning “Lord Stanley” twice in a row, the Cats are now only the fourth team in NHL’s “cap era” history to win the Cup back-to-back. Naturally, it’s understandable that Paul Maurice, who had little playoff success before joining the Miami team, is feeling on top of the world right now. But it wasn’t always the case.

“Well, this is a heck of a team. This is the best team I’ve ever coached from a talent point of view,” said the seasoned coach after going two-for-two with the Panthers. However, his statement could be up for debate. Many hockey connoisseurs would argue that the best team that had Coach Maurice on its bench was the Winnipeg Jets, where the Ontario native was the boss for nine long years. However, the coach himself claims it was one of the hardest times of his life.

WPLG reporter Kacy Hintz posted on X on June 19, sharing Paul Maurice’s comments on how his time with the Jets made him feel exhausted. “The Winnipeg people, the ownership, the fans were better than I was at the end. I was just no good, right? I was burnt,” admits the coach to the reporters. However, he also noted how he tried his best to cope with it all.

“Winnipeg was like, it was this incredible place in my mind. So I was good when I was done. I wouldn’t say that I was proud of my career, but I could manage how I viewed it,” Maurice underscored how he created for himself a bubble where he wanted to find peace despite his shambolic run with Winnipeg. With him as the coach, the Jets played 39 playoff games, none of which were in the Stanley Cup Finals.

He went on to explain how his life changed after one fateful phone call. Recalling how he was out on a fishing trip after calling it quits with the Jets, Maurice said, “My phone rings and it’s a number I don’t know, so I don’t answer it. Why would I? And then I get this really profane text from Tripp Tracy, I believe, ‘Answer your phone’, with other words mixed in. It was Bill Zito.”

The rest is hockey history. However, after his rather underwhelming run with Winnipeg, Maurice’s perception about coaching took a 180-degree turn following his arrival in Sunrise, Florida. “Watching these guys interact with each other, that’s been the gift to this place. That’s been the best thing for me. We become, when you’re burnt out, you are exhausted, cynical, and you believe you’re not effective. Those are the three components to it. And that cynicism is real. It was somewhat life-altering this year to watch the way they treat each other and to realize I could treat them the same way,” the coach hailed his Florida Panthers players to help him and regain his confidence, and come out of his miserable mental state.

Since Coach Maurice took over, the Cats have won 11 of 12 series. That, in itself, is something that highlights how well the collaboration has worked. However, his players also seem to place him on a high pedestal. “He really has control of this team. The team’s really just bought into the culture that he’s implemented into this team, and we’re all willing to do whatever it takes and play that hard style that he keeps preaching to us night in and night out,” said Sam Bennett about how Paul has instilled a culture of aggression in the locker room.

And what about the man who brought Maurice to South Florida? Bill Zito, like the Panthers’ players, is equally in awe of the coach, even more so after his back-to-back Stanley Cup success. The Florida GM said, “He’s a very bright man. He’s a teacher, he’s a coach. He’ll push, he’ll pull, he’ll harp. But you don’t want to disappoint him. His character is so high that, working with him, he makes you want to be better because you don’t want to disappoint him.”

All that love did pay off for Paul Maurice, even if things sometimes did look pretty bleak.

Paul Maurice couldn’t have asked for a better team

The Panthers finished the regular season with a 47-31-4 overall record. Undoubtedly, a good enough campaign. And yet, with 98 points, the defending champs were below both the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Tampa Bay Lightning. However, as soon as the playoffs kicked in, the Miami team showed its true colors, and with Maurice behind them, the players upped their game in the most spectacular way possible.

After sending the in-state rivals, the Bolts, packing in the first round, the Panthers took down the Maple Leafs and the Canes, both teams that were previously coached by Maurice. However, the Oilers did seem to put up a tougher fight than the others. Coming back from behind to win Game 1 of the 2025 Stanley Cup Finals, Edmonton put an end to Paul Maurice’s streak of winning all postseason games when being up by the end of the first period. The feat was emphatic, and the Canadian team didn’t miss the opportunity to take a sly potshot at the coach.

But that didn’t do enough damage to the Cats’ or Maurice’s determination to keep pushing. The Panthers bounced back in games 2 and 3 to put themselves ahead in the series. While the Oilers did their best to hang on, the Panthers ultimately managed to reign supreme. And the coach couldn’t be more thankful. On several occasions, Maurice mentioned that his players have shown incredible grit and resilience to keep up with the grinding schedule of the League.

Respect, indeed, as they say, is a two-way street!