Stanley Cup champion Panthers and coach Paul Maurice agree on contract extension

By TIM REYNOLDS The Associated Press
Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice keeps an eye on his team during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Jim Rassol)[ASSOCIATED PRESS/Jim Rassol]

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — The contract extension discussions between Paul Maurice and the Florida Panthers weren’t exactly of the back-and-forth variety.

“There was really no negotiation,” Maurice said. “They made me a really nice offer and we shook hands and I said, ‘Thank you.’ And that was it.”

And with that, the Panthers are keeping their Stanley Cup-winning coach for the foreseeable future. Maurice and the Panthers have agreed on an extended contract, the team announced Tuesday without disclosing terms.

“I’m interested in coaching the Florida Panthers for as long as they’ll have me,” Maurice said. “It’s great coming to the rink.”

Maurice was in the final year of a three-year deal, and it was a certainty that Panthers owners Vincent and Teresa Viola planned on keeping him around after he took the team to the Stanley Cup Final in each of his first two seasons.

“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 statement. “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.”

The Panthers announced the extension a couple hours before taking the ice against Minnesota, losing that game 5-1.

“I’m hopeful the ink dried on that thing,” Maurice quipped after the game. “No, it’s an honor. I’m very thankful and appreciative to the Viola family, not just for their generosity but for the investment they’ve made here over the years. … We’ve had success together but there’s a lot of people that made that possible.”

Maurice has 98 regular-season wins with Florida, already the third most in club history behind Jacques Martin (110) and Peter DeBoer (103). And his postseason success with the Panthers is beyond compare; he’s won 29 playoff games with Florida — highlighted by the team winning its first Stanley Cup last season — while every other coach in club history has 25 playoff wins combined.

It’s the latest big deal that the team has gotten done, and more proof that Florida’s championship core might be together for years to come.

The Panthers announced already this season that they’ve signed forward Carter Verhaeghe to an eight-year extension, meaning they have many of their key players — also including Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, Anton Lundell and Gustav Forsling — under contract through at least 2030. And the team is talking to forward Sam Bennett about an extension as well.

“Guys really trust him,” Bennett said of Maurice. “They really believe in him and his systems, and it clearly works. Obviously, that’s great news for the Florida Panthers organization.”

Maurice is second in NHL history in games coached (1,856) behind Scotty Bowman (2,141), and fourth all-time in wins (873) behind Bowman (1,244), Joel Quenneville (969) and Barry Trotz (914).

Last season’s title by the Panthers was Maurice’s first Stanley Cup championship.

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