It's About The Hugs

With the start of the NHL season upon us, I want to revisit the end of last season.

After 1,849 NHL games as a head coach, Paul Maurice became a Stanley Cup champion.

In 1995, Maurice became the second-youngest coach in NHL history when he was named head coach of the Hartford Whalers at age 28.

Now age 57, and with stops in Carolina, Toronto, Winnipeg, and Florida, Maurice has coached the second-most games in NHL history, and sits 4th all-time in wins, and 1st all-time in losses.

Put simply: Paul Maurice has seen some stuff!

When asked how the Cup would change his life after 30 years of chasing it, he said: "I hope it doesn’t. I hope I’m learning to live my life well enough that the trophy doesn’t define how I treat the people around me."

I collected a range of Maurice's post-game perspectives after his Florida Panthers won Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final:

On what he focused on during the long stints between games:

"What you want is for your team to look a certain way. We have an identity that we all bond together around. That’s where the mind goes; how do I get them back to the place that they can play with freedom. [Tonight] we played with some freedom, we made plays, we didn’t play the game not to lose...we played to win the game.”

On playing the last period of Game 7 with the lead:

“We talked about this from training camp onwards. If there’s 8 minutes to go in the deciding game, if we got this right, we’re saying: I hope the clock slows down, not speeds up. I don’t want the game to end, I’m not wishing for this thing to be over, I want to live the moment that we’re in."

On the personal jubilation of finally winning the Cup:

“It’s brilliant. I’ve never hugged so many sweaty men in my life. It’s not what I thought it would be, it’s so much better. It’s the hugs, man! Hey Dad, your name is going up with your heroes…Béliveau, Richard, Howe, Lindsay, Maurice."

Cody’s Notes

• Here’s a bonus one for you. Paul Maurice isn’t just measured and marvellous when he wins the ultimate prize. After “resigning” from the Winnipeg Jets after 8.5 seasons, he was asked whether the team had quit on him. Here’s what he had to say:
  
  "They haven’t quit on me. They’re a good bunch of men. My relationship is strong with all of them. And I’m cheering for them. I am. But when you have a 26-year professional hockey coaching career, you know…they need a new voice. They need somebody to help them get to that next place. It doesn't necessarily need to be a more experienced, more talented guy. It needs to be a different voice. It’s the right time for it. And I know that."