Paul Maurice

Paul Maurice, (born January 30 1967 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario) is a professional ice hockey coach and former junior ice hockey player. Originally a defenceman in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), Maurice's playing career ended after an eye injury. He is the former head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Hockey career

Maurice was Philadelphia's 12th choice, 252nd overall, in the 1985 NHL Entry Draft, five spots after former Maple Leafs Vice-President and General Manager John Ferguson, Jr. was taken by the Montreal Canadiens.

In 1985, Paul played defence for the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL. He was struck in the eye by a puck, which had ricocheted off his stick, during a charity hockey game in which he was participating. He still has a blind spot and suffers fuzziness on the right side of his field of vision. When goalie Pat Jablonski was sent down by the St. Louis Blues, the Windsor Spitfires were therefore in excess number of players. At this point he was given the option by team owner Peter Karmanos to be traded or step behind the bench. He thus began his coaching career with the Detroit Junior Red Wings (a team Karmanos operated) of the OHL from 1993 to 1995, leading the team to the J. Ross Robertson Cup and a second place finish in Memorial Cup in 1995.

He was then hired to coach the Hartford Whalers (later the Carolina Hurricanes) of the NHL in 1995, at the remarkably young age of 28. Throughout much of his tenure, he was the youngest active coach in the NHL. The high point of his NHL career came in the 2001-02 NHL season, when the Hurricanes reached the Stanley Cup finals, losing to the Detroit Red Wings. After coaching 604 regular season games, he was let go by the Hurricanes in 2003 when the team started the first 20 games 8-12. Under Maurice the Hurricanes achieved four consecutive winning seasons from 1998-2002.

On June 24, 2005 he was hired to coach the Toronto Marlies, after the team had relocated from St. John's, Newfoundland. In the 2005-06 season, the Marlies qualified for fourth playoff spot in their division. They were subsequently eliminated by the Grand Rapids Griffins in the first round.

Maurice reached several coaching milestones during his first season with the Toronto Maple Leafs, registering a career-high in wins (40) and points percentage (.555). He also earned his 300th NHL victory March 6, 2007 versus Washington and coached his 750th NHL game March 27, 2007 versus Carolina.

On May 7, 2008, Maurice was fired by interim Maple Leafs GM Cliff Fletcher, after missing the playoffs for two seasons in a row. [cite news | url = http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=237026 | title =Maple Leafs fire head coach Paul Maurice | publisher = TSN | date = 2008-05-07 | accessdate = 2008-05-07]

Coaching Record

Miscellaneous facts

* He was drafted 252nd (last overall) by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1985 NHL Entry Draft.

* He has only peripheral vision and fuzziness in his right eye after he was struck by a puck during a charity hockey game, in 1985, while he was playing defence for the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League.

* Paul Maurice is not the only member of his family with eye related issues. His father, Denis Maurice, lost his right eye when, at the age of 5, he was accidentally struck by a shovel. His brother, Shane Maurice, has not had full use of his right eye since birth.

* He and his wife, Michelle, have three children: Sydney, Jake, and Luke.

References

External links

*hockeydb|38124

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