George Richards, FHN Publisher
FORT LAUDERDALE — Paul Maurice is back in Winnipeg, coaching against the Jets for the third time as coach of the Florida Panthers.
The Panthers, and Maurice, are Stanley Cup champions for the first time.
Winnipeg has the best record in the NHL at 15-3-0.
Any warm feelings between the fans of Winnipeg and Maurice’s Panthers will probably be put on hold after Florida blew out the Jets 5-0 on Saturday in Sunrise.
In the second, with the Panthers up four, some fans decided it wise to taunt the top team in the NHL with chants of ‘Overrated!’
The Florida bench noticed.
Assuredly, Winnipeg’s fans watching on Hockey Night in Canada did as well.
“Ouch,” Maurice said Monday before his team’s flight to Manitoba. “We are getting something back, I can guarantee that.”
As he slipped out a side door, Maurice said quietly: “Probably deserved.”
Still, Maurice’s third trip back to Winnipeg as coach of the Panthers will probably end up being a nice trip — regardless of the tonight’s result.
When Maurice first returned to the place where he coached for parts of nine seasons, he and assistant coach Jamie Kompon were warmly welcomed by the crowd and feted by the team with a video montage.
Last season, Florida’s trip to Winnipeg came on its first road trip — and the Panthers dropped to 0-2 with a 6-4 loss to the Jets.
This time?
“I’m excited to see my daughter,” Maurice said Monday. “That’s what I’m looking forward to on this trip.”
Maurice would also like a second straight win over the Jets.
On Saturday, the Panthers ended their four-game losing streak to the Jets — all, coincidentally, with Maurice behind the bench — with a rout which got testy in the third.
Despite being outscored 9-1 in its losses to the Lightning and Panthers last week, Winnipeg is still atop the NHL standings with 30 points.
Maurice will still be warmly received in a town he loves.
After all, many Jets fans rooted for the Panthers during their run to the Stanley Cup — with Maurice saying after Florida’s win that he hoped Winnipeg would win it next.
Only his Panthers will not be welcomed against their beloved Jets.
Maurice was asked what makes Winnipeg such a unique hockey market.
Last week, he privately discussed it, saying, “all the good things we love about our sport are right there.”
Monday, he expanded on it.
“It’s all the people, and it is the connection to the sport and the game,” Maurice said. “Some really important players come through there too, so there’s a bond there. I would think it probably has to lead the league in outdoor rinks. It’s a real thing. It’s that connected to the game.’’
Maurice, who coached various teams against the old Jets, took over the second NHL team there in its third season after the Atlanta Thrashers relocated to Winnipeg and brought back the Jets name.
The Jets started in 1972 in the World Hockey Association and absorbed into the NHL in 1979.
In 1996, however, the team packed up, moved to Arizona, and became the Coyotes.
By 2011, Winnipeg got its NHL team back, with the Thrashers moving north.
Rick Dudley, Atlanta’s GM at the time, was bought out and now works in Florida’s front office.
Maurice took over the Jets in 2014 and stayed until 2021.
“To have a team and to lose a team and get their team back, there’s an understanding of how special it is to have an NHL team in your town,’’ Maurice said.
“There’s a connection to the game there that I think is cultural, but it’s also geographic. A lot of people spend a lot of time outdoors playing hockey up there, and you can, right? You’re pretty sure you can build a rink every year.”
Maurice said bringing back the Jets name — that was not always a given, and they almost were called the Manitoba Moose — gives longtime hockey fans in the region a connection to the past.
“You meet a lot of people up there who remember those games, who went to those games,” Maurice said.
“There are a lot of people where it is generational. The grandfather went to the games, and now the great-grandson is going to the games so that connection is pretty important. Love the crest, right? It’s just a great story of the roots of hockey in Canada.”