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Vancouver Sun
24-06-2025
- Sport
- Vancouver Sun
Abbotsford Canucks: Could (should?) Manny Malhotra fill Dallas Stars' coaching vacancy?
It's not whether could Manny Malhotra run his first NHL bench next season. It's should the Calder Cup champion head coach fill the Dallas Stars' vacancy after guiding the Abbotsford Canucks to a remarkable and resilient AHL season as a rookie bench boss? Malhotra, 45, is a hot commodity, but the heat is always on in Dallas to take the next step. To finally clear that big Western Conference final hurdle and get back to the Stanley Cup final after three-straight failures under head coach Peter DeBoer, who was fired June 6. The Stars' anxiousness was reflected is signing pending UFA centre Matt Duchene, 34, on Thursday to a team-friendly, four-year, $18-million US extension. The Stars got a palatable salary cap hit, and Duchene, who was on the Vancouver Canucks ' radar to fix their riddle in the middle, got term. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Duchene had 30 goals and 82 points this season, and his contract extension was another indication that Dallas has unfinished business. What does this possibly mean for Malhotra? There is a reason why the Stars are still waiting to fill their coaching void. It's Malhotra. He's well beyond a curiosity. Stars general manager Jim Nill could convince owner Tom Gaglardi to go the customary route and chose from a number of seasoned coaches to push a veteran-laden roster. They may need a heavy old-school hand. That list includes those fired this season, others looking for another shot in The Show, and those worthy of taking the next career step. However, Gaglardi could believe a fresh voice in Malhotra amid a fast-changing game may be a worthy play. It worked for the Washington Capitals and Spencer Carbery. At 43, the Victoria native was an AHL head coach and turned his second season running an NHL bench into the Jack Adams Award in 2024-25. The Stars could chose familiarity and promote Texas Stars head coach Neil Graham after five seasons of running the AHL affiliate bench. An assessment trip to Cedar Park, Tex. this month would have been prudent. Watching Graham, 40, match Western Conference final wits with Malhotra would check boxes. Malhotra's management is a culmination of 1,026 NHL games as a centre with seven teams — including three seasons with the Stars — and seven seasons as an NHL assistant. And the manner in which young impressionable players and grizzled veterans responded to Malhotra in Abbotsford is beyond noteworthy. It's everything. The Canucks struggled in January, strung together a franchise record 13-game wins streak, and finished the regular season on a 16-1-1 run. Malhotra saluted his staff and players Monday following a dramatic 3-2 victory over the Charlotte Checkers to claim the championship in six games. But the title run was more a reflection of him getting the buy-in. 'The belief is far greater than I every thought a team could have,' said Malhotra. 'They all believed in one another, the system, and the culture they've built. It's extremely special. The entire run we just realized how committed these guys were. How motivated they were to win.' It's hard to coach in the AHL. The roster is in constant flux with injures, NHL recalls, struggles, and a brutal travel schedule. However, at root of it all is a devotion to the game and willingness to make it memorable. Former Canucks head coach Travis Green, who guides the Ottawa Senators and finished sixth in Jack Adams Award voting this season, was at the helm of the 2015 Utica Comets who advance to the Calder Cup final. He knows what Malhotra went through in this long playoff run and had him as an assistant for two seasons in Vancouver. He saw something special. 'I could see him being a (NHL) coach if he gets the bug, and I think he has it,' Green told Postmedia. 'Always had a real love for the game and wanted to be on the ice all the time. To be a good coach, you've really got to love it. It doesn't feel like a job to me. It's not work. It's got to be fun. 'Much like playing, Manny has those attributed and the smartness. That part is how you see the game, and he always saw it in a smart way.' The challenge for any new NHL coach is to gain respect and reach elite players. Carbery accomplished that with superstar Alex Ovechkin, and Malhotra would have to mirror that approach in Dallas, depending on the status of six remaining UFAs in their 30s and key younger players. Abbotsford general manager Ryan Johnson told Postmedia in hiring Malhtora that his bigger career picture was always in focus. 'He wants to be an NHL coach and we discussed his path. It was an open conversation,' said Johnson. 'I go through a pretty thorough process in my hiring and I hope they become the next whatever. I tell people that if they're still here after eight years, I've done something wrong. They want to elevate, but it may not be here.' Malhotra was a finalist to replace departed Rick Tocchet as Canucks bench boss. Management chose to promote assistant coach Adam Foote as a first-time NHL head coach. Roster familiarity and structure were factors in his three-year deal. Only time will tell if it was the right call, or if Malhotra may be the one that got away. bkuzma@
NBC Sports
17-06-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
One Stanley Cup ring hasn't changed Paul Maurice, who has the Panthers on the verge of repeating
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Paul Maurice is not the same person or coach he was when he got his first job in the NHL at 28 years old in the mid-1990s with the Hartford Whalers. He followed that organization to Carolina, went to Toronto, returned to Carolina and spent nearly a decade in Winnipeg. The culmination of those three decades came last year when he coached the Florida Panthers to the Stanley Cup. One win from becoming just the 18th coach in NHL history to win it back to back, Maurice is the same guy his players have gotten to know and follow since he arrived in the summer of 2022. 'I don't think he's changed since winning,' playoff leading goal-scorer Sam Bennett said. 'He's the same. He can be hard on us. He's hard on us when he needs to be, and then he's relaxed with us when he knows that we need to, so I think he really does have a good feel for what our team needs. We all have the utmost respect for him.' Maurice, now 58, thought that was a nice thing to say. But what has allowed him to earn that respect from within the locker room? Unsurprisingly, his words. 'If you walk into the room and you just tell the truth, whether they want to hear it or not but it's the truth, and over time you could look back and say, 'What that person told me was the truth,' you'll have respect for that,' Maurice said. 'So, I work hard at trying to find the truth every day and then just telling it as simply as I can with the occasional joke slipped in. Most times I'm the only one that thinks it's funny.' It's a different kind of funny that Maurice almost stopped coaching after stepping away from the Jets in 2022. General manager Bill Zito called, Maurice took the job and the rest is Florida hockey history. The Panthers are on the verge of winning 11 of 12 series since Maurice took over. Not once was he close to the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year, but that's a regular-season trophy, and he has done nothing but win in the playoffs. 'He really has control of this team,' Bennett said. 'The team's really just bought into the culture that he's implemented into this team, and we're all willing to do whatever it takes and play that hard style that he keeps preaching to us night in and night out and we've all just bought into that over the years.' A.J. Greer, one of several additions who weren't part of the 2024 run, said Maurice is a unique combination of a motivator who is also analytical and technical. 'He's kind of just a complete package of being able to motivate us and elevate our games mentally,' Greer said. 'He's also a guy that can really translate prior games into a meeting and point out what we need to be better at. He sees the game incredibly well.' Zito credits Maurice and his staff, along with ownership and the lifestyle in South Florida, for making the Panthers an attractive destination for free agents and players with no-trade clauses who can choose where to go. There is good reason for that beyond Maurice's affable personality. From Bennett to Niko Mikkola, Nate Schmidt and many, many others, players who were either adrift in their careers or looking to get on track have thrived playing for him. 'They give you a blue print of how he wants you to play, and he molds that around your strengths as a player and he doesn't ask you to do more than what you should be doing,' said Schmidt, who got a glimpse into Maurice playing one season for him in Winnipeg. 'It's not the easiest system just to jump into, but he expects a certain level out of each guy and if you give that to him, there's no problem. And that's something that I find it was freeing for me, and once you kind of settle into how he wants you to play and into what kind of role he wants you to be in, it takes a lot of the pressure off.' The past several months has been about the pressure of defending a title, but Maurice has enjoyed this run more, acknowledging 'you're allowed to enjoy it a little bit more' with your name already etched in hockey's hallowed trophy. Game 6 is set to be Maurice's 2,091st game as a head coach in the NHL, more than anyone except nine-time Stanley Cup-winner Scotty Bowman. He has some time to catch up to that record, but Maurice has not been at a loss for words going for his second as his popularity among players grows. 'I think you guys know, too: He's got a lot of things to say,' center Anton Lundell said. 'But it's fun to be here, and as a group we like him.'
Fox Sports
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
One Stanley Cup ring hasn't changed Paul Maurice, who has the Panthers on the verge of repeating
Associated Press FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Paul Maurice is not the same person or coach he was when he got his first job in the NHL at 28 years old in the mid-1990s with the Hartford Whalers. He followed that organization to Carolina, went to Toronto, returned to Carolina and spent nearly a decade in Winnipeg. The culmination of those three decades came last year when he coached the Florida Panthers to the Stanley Cup. One win from becoming just the 18th coach in NHL history to win it back to back, Maurice is the same guy his players have gotten to know and follow since he arrived in the summer of 2022. 'I don't think he's changed since winning,' playoff leading goal-scorer Sam Bennett said. "He's the same. He can be hard on us. He's hard on us when he needs to be, and then he's relaxed with us when he knows that we need to, so I think he really does have a good feel for what our team needs. We all have the utmost respect for him.' Maurice, now 58, thought that was a nice thing to say. But what has allowed him to earn that respect from within the locker room? Unsurprisingly, his words. 'If you walk into the room and you just tell the truth, whether they want to hear it or not but it's the truth, and over time you could look back and say, 'What that person told me was the truth,' you'll have respect for that,' Maurice said. "So, I work hard at trying to find the truth every day and then just telling it as simply as I can with the occasional joke slipped in. Most times I'm the only one that thinks it's funny.' It's a different kind of funny that Maurice almost stopped coaching after stepping away from the Jets in 2022. General manager Bill Zito called, Maurice took the job and the rest is Florida hockey history. The Panthers are on the verge of winning 11 of 12 series since Maurice took over. Not once was he close to the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year, but that's a regular-season trophy, and he has done nothing but win in the playoffs. 'He really has control of this team,' Bennett said. 'The team's really just bought into the culture that he's implemented into this team, and we're all willing to do whatever it takes and play that hard style that he keeps preaching to us night in and night out and we've all just bought into that over the years.' A.J. Greer, one of several additions who weren't part of the 2024 run, said Maurice is a unique combination of a motivator who is also analytical and technical. 'He's kind of just a complete package of being able to motivate us and elevate our games mentally,' Greer said. 'He's also a guy that can really translate prior games into a meeting and point out what we need to be better at. He sees the game incredibly well." Zito credits Maurice and his staff, along with ownership and the lifestyle in South Florida, for making the Panthers an attractive destination for free agents and players with no-trade clauses who can choose where to go. There is good reason for that beyond Maurice's affable personality. From Bennett to Niko Mikkola, Nate Schmidt and many, many others, players who were either adrift in their careers or looking to get on track have thrived playing for him. 'They give you a blue print of how he wants you to play, and he molds that around your strengths as a player and he doesn't ask you to do more than what you should be doing,' said Schmidt, who got a glimpse into Maurice playing one season for him in Winnipeg. "It's not the easiest system just to jump into, but he expects a certain level out of each guy and if you give that to him, there's no problem. And that's something that I find it was freeing for me, and once you kind of settle into how he wants you to play and into what kind of role he wants you to be in, it takes a lot of the pressure off.' The past several months has been about the pressure of defending a title, but Maurice has enjoyed this run more, acknowledging 'you're allowed to enjoy it a little bit more' with your name already etched in hockey's hallowed trophy. Tuesday night is set to be Maurice's 2,091st game as a head coach in the NHL, more than anyone except nine-time Stanley Cup-winner Scotty Bowman. He has some time to catch up to that record, but Maurice has not been at a loss for words going for his second as his popularity among players grows. 'I think you guys know, too: He's got a lot of things to say," center Anton Lundell said. "But it's fun to be here, and as a group we like him.' ___ AP NHL playoffs: and recommended
Hamilton Spectator
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Hamilton Spectator
One Stanley Cup ring hasn't changed Paul Maurice, who has the Panthers on the verge of repeating
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Paul Maurice is not the same person or coach he was when he got his first job in the NHL at 28 years old in the mid-1990s with the Hartford Whalers. He followed that organization to Carolina, went to Toronto, returned to Carolina and spent nearly a decade in Winnipeg. The culmination of those three decades came last year when he coached the Florida Panthers to the Stanley Cup . One win from becoming just the 18th coach in NHL history to win it back to back, Maurice is the same guy his players have gotten to know and follow since he arrived in the summer of 2022. 'I don't think he's changed since winning,' playoff leading goal-scorer Sam Bennett said. 'He's the same. He can be hard on us. He's hard on us when he needs to be, and then he's relaxed with us when he knows that we need to, so I think he really does have a good feel for what our team needs. We all have the utmost respect for him.' Maurice, now 58, thought that was a nice thing to say. But what has allowed him to earn that respect from within the locker room? Unsurprisingly, his words. 'If you walk into the room and you just tell the truth, whether they want to hear it or not but it's the truth, and over time you could look back and say, 'What that person told me was the truth,' you'll have respect for that,' Maurice said. 'So, I work hard at trying to find the truth every day and then just telling it as simply as I can with the occasional joke slipped in. Most times I'm the only one that thinks it's funny.' It's a different kind of funny that Maurice almost stopped coaching after stepping away from the Jets in 2022. General manager Bill Zito called, Maurice took the job and the rest is Florida hockey history. The Panthers are on the verge of winning 11 of 12 series since Maurice took over. Not once was he close to the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year, but that's a regular-season trophy, and he has done nothing but win in the playoffs. 'He really has control of this team,' Bennett said. 'The team's really just bought into the culture that he's implemented into this team, and we're all willing to do whatever it takes and play that hard style that he keeps preaching to us night in and night out and we've all just bought into that over the years.' A.J. Greer, one of several additions who weren't part of the 2024 run, said Maurice is a unique combination of a motivator who is also analytical and technical. 'He's kind of just a complete package of being able to motivate us and elevate our games mentally,' Greer said. 'He's also a guy that can really translate prior games into a meeting and point out what we need to be better at. He sees the game incredibly well.' Zito credits Maurice and his staff, along with ownership and the lifestyle in South Florida, for making the Panthers an attractive destination for free agents and players with no-trade clauses who can choose where to go. There is good reason for that beyond Maurice's affable personality. From Bennett to Niko Mikkola, Nate Schmidt and many, many others, players who were either adrift in their careers or looking to get on track have thrived playing for him. 'They give you a blue print of how he wants you to play, and he molds that around your strengths as a player and he doesn't ask you to do more than what you should be doing,' said Schmidt, who got a glimpse into Maurice playing one season for him in Winnipeg. 'It's not the easiest system just to jump into, but he expects a certain level out of each guy and if you give that to him, there's no problem. And that's something that I find it was freeing for me, and once you kind of settle into how he wants you to play and into what kind of role he wants you to be in, it takes a lot of the pressure off.' The past several months has been about the pressure of defending a title, but Maurice has enjoyed this run more, acknowledging 'you're allowed to enjoy it a little bit more' with your name already etched in hockey's hallowed trophy. Tuesday night is set to be Maurice's 2,091st game as a head coach in the NHL, more than anyone except nine-time Stanley Cup-winner Scotty Bowman. He has some time to catch up to that record, but Maurice has not been at a loss for words going for his second as his popularity among players grows. 'I think you guys know, too: He's got a lot of things to say,' center Anton Lundell said. 'But it's fun to be here, and as a group we like him.' ___ AP NHL playoffs: and
Winnipeg Free Press
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
One Stanley Cup ring hasn't changed Paul Maurice, who has the Panthers on the verge of repeating
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Paul Maurice is not the same person or coach he was when he got his first job in the NHL at 28 years old in the mid-1990s with the Hartford Whalers. He followed that organization to Carolina, went to Toronto, returned to Carolina and spent nearly a decade in Winnipeg. The culmination of those three decades came last year when he coached the Florida Panthers to the Stanley Cup. One win from becoming just the 18th coach in NHL history to win it back to back, Maurice is the same guy his players have gotten to know and follow since he arrived in the summer of 2022. 'I don't think he's changed since winning,' playoff leading goal-scorer Sam Bennett said. 'He's the same. He can be hard on us. He's hard on us when he needs to be, and then he's relaxed with us when he knows that we need to, so I think he really does have a good feel for what our team needs. We all have the utmost respect for him.' Maurice, now 58, thought that was a nice thing to say. But what has allowed him to earn that respect from within the locker room? Unsurprisingly, his words. 'If you walk into the room and you just tell the truth, whether they want to hear it or not but it's the truth, and over time you could look back and say, 'What that person told me was the truth,' you'll have respect for that,' Maurice said. 'So, I work hard at trying to find the truth every day and then just telling it as simply as I can with the occasional joke slipped in. Most times I'm the only one that thinks it's funny.' It's a different kind of funny that Maurice almost stopped coaching after stepping away from the Jets in 2022. General manager Bill Zito called, Maurice took the job and the rest is Florida hockey history. The Panthers are on the verge of winning 11 of 12 series since Maurice took over. Not once was he close to the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year, but that's a regular-season trophy, and he has done nothing but win in the playoffs. 'He really has control of this team,' Bennett said. 'The team's really just bought into the culture that he's implemented into this team, and we're all willing to do whatever it takes and play that hard style that he keeps preaching to us night in and night out and we've all just bought into that over the years.' A.J. Greer, one of several additions who weren't part of the 2024 run, said Maurice is a unique combination of a motivator who is also analytical and technical. 'He's kind of just a complete package of being able to motivate us and elevate our games mentally,' Greer said. 'He's also a guy that can really translate prior games into a meeting and point out what we need to be better at. He sees the game incredibly well.' Zito credits Maurice and his staff, along with ownership and the lifestyle in South Florida, for making the Panthers an attractive destination for free agents and players with no-trade clauses who can choose where to go. There is good reason for that beyond Maurice's affable personality. From Bennett to Niko Mikkola, Nate Schmidt and many, many others, players who were either adrift in their careers or looking to get on track have thrived playing for him. 'They give you a blue print of how he wants you to play, and he molds that around your strengths as a player and he doesn't ask you to do more than what you should be doing,' said Schmidt, who got a glimpse into Maurice playing one season for him in Winnipeg. 'It's not the easiest system just to jump into, but he expects a certain level out of each guy and if you give that to him, there's no problem. And that's something that I find it was freeing for me, and once you kind of settle into how he wants you to play and into what kind of role he wants you to be in, it takes a lot of the pressure off.' Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. The past several months has been about the pressure of defending a title, but Maurice has enjoyed this run more, acknowledging 'you're allowed to enjoy it a little bit more' with your name already etched in hockey's hallowed trophy. Tuesday night is set to be Maurice's 2,091st game as a head coach in the NHL, more than anyone except nine-time Stanley Cup-winner Scotty Bowman. He has some time to catch up to that record, but Maurice has not been at a loss for words going for his second as his popularity among players grows. 'I think you guys know, too: He's got a lot of things to say,' center Anton Lundell said. 'But it's fun to be here, and as a group we like him.' ___ AP NHL playoffs: and
