Paul Maurice was named the head coach of the Florida Panthers on June 22, 2022. A veteran of 28 NHL seasons as a head coach, Maurice joined Florida after having spent nine seasons behind the bench with the Winnipeg Jets (2013-14 to 2021-22). He previously served as the head coach for the Hartford Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes (1995-96 to 2003-04, 2008-09 to 2011-12) and the Toronto Maple Leafs (2006-07 to 2007-08).
In his inaugural season in South Florida, Maurice steered the franchise to a Prince of Wales Trophy as Eastern Conference champions after posting a 12-4 record through the first three rounds of the postseason, including an upset defeat of the record-setting Boston Bruins in the first round. The 43-point differential between Boston and Florida during the regular season marked the second-largest differential by any team in a series win in league history, following the Los Angeles Kings defeat of the Edmonton Oilers in 1982 Division Semifinals.
Following Florida’s 2022-23 campaign, Maurice coached the Cats to a 2023-24 Atlantic Division title before capturing the Panthers first-ever Stanley Cup championship in a thrilling seven-game series over the Oilers. Florida would return to the Stanley Cup Final in 2024-25, once again defeating Edmonton to earn back-to-back titles. With the consecutive championships Maurice became just the fifth head coach in NHL history to win at least two Stanley Cups through their first three seasons with a team.
Prior to coming to South Florida, Maurice led the Hurricanes to the 2002 Stanley Cup Final and 2009 Eastern Conference Final and guided the Winnipeg Jets to the 2018 Western Conference Final.
Maurice, a native of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, has set numerous milestones throughout his extensive career behind an NHL bench. When he was first hired by the Hartford Whalers to serve as their head coach during the 1995-96 season, he became the fifth youngest NHL head coach in League history at 28 years, 281 days old. He was the youngest in League history to reach 500, 1,000 and 1,500 games as a head coach, joined Scotty Bowman as the second coach to reach 2,000 games on March 24, 2026, and is one of three coaches to earn at least 175 wins with three different franchises. Maurice also possesses the Winnipeg Jets franchise record for games coached (600) and wins (315).
Prior to his NHL coaching career, Maurice spent two seasons (1993-94 to 1994-95) as head coach of the Detroit Jr. Red Wings of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), culminating in an OHL championship in 1994-95.
Selected by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 12th round (252nd overall) of the 1985 NHL Draft, Maurice played four seasons with the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League from 1984-85 to 1987-88.
Maurice and his wife, Michelle, have three children: Sydney, Jake and Luke.
