Florida Panthers turning to ex-Winnipeg Jets coach Paul Maurice

SUNRISE – Paul Maurice has been hired as the Florida Panthers' new head coach,   taking over a franchise coming off a year when it had the best regular-season record in the NHL but fell short once again in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

General Manager Bill Zito made the announcement Wednesday night amid a day of reports and rumors that the former Winnipeg Jets head coach soon would be running the Panthers. He replaces interim coach Andrew Brunette, who could remain with the organization if he chooses to do so.

Brunette took over early last season following the resignation of Joel Quenneville, who had to step down after the revelation of how the Chicago Blackhawks mishandled abuse allegations brought by a player during the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs. Quenneville coached Chicago at that time.

The 55-year-old Maurice will be introduced Thursday morning, the Panthers said.

“At the completion of our season, we began an in-depth examination of all aspects of our team. After taking the appropriate amount of time for analysis, we determined that we needed the perfect fit to continue with the growth of our players and stay on the path for our franchise goals,” Zito said. “Paul’s experience and intellect were just what we were looking for and we are thrilled for him to step into the role of head coach.”

Maurice has served as an NHL head coach for 24 seasons with a 775-680-99-130 career record, Maurice’s 1,684 games coached are the fourth-most in NHL history. His 775 victories as an NHL head coach are the seventh-most all time, and he is one of three coaches to earn at least 300 wins with two different franchises.

His NHL coaching career includes stops with the Hartford Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes (1995-96 to 2003-04, 2008-09 to 2011-12), Toronto Maple Leafs (2006-07 to 2007-08) and Winnipeg Jets (2013-14 to 2021-22). He stepped down as the Jets' coach in December.

In the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Maurice has coached 92 games as a head coach, the sixth-most among active bench bosses. With Carolina, he reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2001-02 and the Eastern Conference Final in 2008-09, and he reached the Western Conference Final with Winnipeg in 2017-18.

The Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario native has set numerous milestones throughout his extensive career behind an NHL bench. When he was first hired by the Whalers to serve as their head coach during the 1995-96 season, he became the then second-youngest NHL head coach in League history. He owns the Jets franchise record for games coached (600) and wins (315) and was the youngest in League history to reach both 1,000 and 1,500 games as a head coach, and the second-youngest to earn 500 wins.

Prior to his NHL head 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.

Outside of the NHL, Maurice served as head coach of Magnitogorsk Metallurg of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) during the 2012-13 season, leading the club to a 27-13-12 record.

On the international stage, Maurice served as an assistant coach for Team Canada at the 2014 IIHF World Championship and for Team Europe at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, where Europe advanced to the best-of-three final.

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.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Florida Panthers turning to ex-Winnipeg Jets coach Paul Maurice