Paul Maurice on Pete DeBoer Being Fired: ‘He’s Going to Be OK’

It has been well documented that Florida Panthers coach Paul Maurice and Pete DeBoer have been close friends since both were junior players, so, when DeBoer was fired by the Dallas Stars on Friday morning, Maurice had a few thoughts.

They were brief, however.

“He’ll be alright,’’ Maurice said before his team beat the Oilers 5-4 in double overtime of Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final on Friday.

“He’s a good coach. I think when you get elite teams, you’ve got to push them real hard to get to where they get to. Then, at some point, you need a summer off, pick your spot. He’s going to be OK.”

DeBoer and Maurice discussed their long friendship in a conversation for the NHL while their two teams squared off in Tampere at this season’s Global Series in Finland.

Maurice also said before the Final started that he roots for a couple of teams in the NHL due to his ties to them: the Stars because of DeBoer, Vancouver for GM Jim Rutherford, and his former Winnipeg Jets.

So, we’ll see where DeBoer lands although it probably will not be before next season. The Boston Bruins hired Marco Sturm Thursday to fill the final NHL vacancy.

“Today was a tough day,” Stars general manager Jim Nill said per NHL.com. “I spoke with Pete this morning at 9 o’clock. Great conversation, he was very professional and he understands. We have a good relationship and that’s probably what makes this the hardest.

“I have the utmost respect for him as a person and as a coach. In the end, it’s my responsibility to make a decision that’s the right decision for the organization moving forward.”

DeBoer, who coached the Panthers from 2009-11, led the Stars to the Western Conference final in each of his three seasons in Dallas — losing to the Oilers twice.

The Stars were 50-26-6 this season, but his pulling of goalie Jake Oettinger early in the Game 5 loss to the Oilers set folks talking about DeBoer’s future in Dallas.

Nill said the handling of the Oettinger situation — the Team USA goalie starts an eight-year contract next season — was not the only reason for the firing. Meeting with players in exit meetings played a big role as well.

Since leaving the Panthers, DeBoer led the Devils and Sharks to the Stanley Cup Final and his Dallas teams amassed more points than any team in the NHL over those three years.

“Pete’s going to win a Cup,” Nill said. “Unfortunately it won’t be here. He’s a good coach. He learns every time. He’s been fired a few times but I think he’s learning each time when that happens. He’s open-minded like that.”

PANTHERS / OILERS / FHN

• Brad Marchand had a huge pair for the Panthers on Friday night. Well, one came on Saturday morning.
• What a night for the Panthers, eh?
• Marchand was the mand for the Panthers on Friday.
• The Panthers changed up their top lines before Game 2.
• The best of Game 2 from NHL.com.
• Tomas Nosek’s delay of game penalty Wednesday was costly — but the Panthers aren’t blaming him for the Game 1 loss.
• Should the NHL look at lessening how tough the delay of game penalty really is?
• How will teams look at Sam Bennett if he makes it to free agency? Positively, probably.
• Don’t forget to subscribe to the FHN YouTube channel to watch interviews with the Florida Panthers throughout the postseason. Quite a few from pre- and postgame on Friday.

NHL / NHN LINKS

• Former Detroit Red Wings coach and Lightning assistant Derek Lalonde is off to Toronto.
• What a new Toronto contract for John Tavares could look like.
• The Senators won’t commit to spending to the cap.
• New teams are calling the Pittsburgh Penguins when it comes to trades.
• Should the Philadelphia Flyers be interested in Martin Necas?
• How Sturm could improve the Boston Bruins in Year 1.
• The Vegas Golden Knights need to target a young top-6 forward on the trade market.

2025 STANLEY CUP FINAL

GAME 3

EDMONTON OILERS @ FLORIDA PANTHERS

Edmonton Leads Best-of-7 Series 1-0

• When: Monday, 8 p.m.
• Where: Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise
• National TV: TNT/truTV 
• National Streaming: Max
• Radio: WQAM 560-AM; WPOW 96.5-FM2; WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys), SiriusXM
• Radio Streaming: SiriusXM, NHL App
• Series Schedule (all games at 8 p.m., TNT) — Game 1: @Edmonton 4, Florida 3 OT; Game 2: @Edmonton; Game 3: @Florida Monday; Game 4: @Florida, Thursday; Game 5*: @Edmonton, Saturday June 14; Game 6*: @Florida, Tuesday June 17; Game 7*: @Edmonton, Friday June 20.
• How They Got Here: Edmonton d. Los Angeles (6), Vegas (5), Dallas (5); Florida d. Tampa Bay (5), Toronto (7), Carolina (5)
• Postseason History: Florida Won 2024 Stanley Cup Final 4-3
• Regular Season: Panthers won 2-0
• All-time Regular Season Series: Oilers lead 23-18-0, 3 ties