Paul Maurice’s family cheered him on from the Sault and ‘always believed’ he would lift the cup

It was a Monday evening that left Denis and Dolores Maurice speechless.

At ages 85 and 83 respectively, the eastern couple finally witnessed their son Paul hoist the Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers for the first time in his prolific NHL head coaching career.

Like millions of people across Canada, the proud parents watched that intense game of seven from their living room – in the same house where Paul grew up – hoping that it would finally be their son’s time.

And it was.

“It was a real surprise – a shock,” Dolores said SooToday“And to think he came all that way.”

“It’s amazing,” Denis added. “You know going seven isn’t healthy; it’s actually a matter of throwing. There are so many variables at play. It is a tough task for both of them.”

Locals who watched the post-game festivities have commented on Maurice’s classy interview with Sportsnet, in which he specifically mentioned his family in the Sault and southern Ontario, who have “suffered from 30 years of losing and making excuses.”

“Dad, your name goes up among your heroes,” he said on national television. “Beliveau, Richard, Howe, Lindsay, Maurice.”

That’s when things started to dawn on Denis, a lifelong hockey fan who idolized these players.

“I never thought about that until he mentioned it,” he said. “It was always an outlet for our sons Paul, Shane and Michael to play hockey. I always believed that all my children could do well.”

The Maurice brothers grew up at a time when virtually every boy in Sault Ste. Marie was playing hockey.

But before Paul got a hockey stick, his parents had to make sure he could skate.

“Paul’s first experiences were wearing hockey skates, but in a less-than-hockey situation,” Denis explains. “He had been figure skating for about a year – before kindergarten. We tried to get him to learn to skate.”

Once he started skating, Maurice quickly fell in love with hockey – and he had no shortage of local influence.

Directly opposite their home on Shannon Road were the tennis courts at Snowdon Park, a popular venue for street hockey.

A few Soo Greyhounds players by the names of Wayne Gretzky and Paul Coffey even ventured there from time to time.

Although he would compete in the OHL in 1985 and sneak into the NHL Draft as the last pick, Maurice’s playing days eventually ended.

But as his younger brother Shane explained So todayit was the countless contacts a young Maurice made with his teammates and coaches that prepared him for a long-term career behind the bench.

“There’s a lot of people still living in Sault Ste. Marie who were all part of those formative years of hockey with him,” Shane said. “One of his bantam coaches was Mike Zuke, and the guy had a full NHL rink in his yard, and anyone from the Bayview area was welcome to go there.”

“Kyle Dubas’ grandfather, Walter, also had a big influence on him,” he added. “The community really sustains itself.”

It took Maurice 1,985 games as an NHL head coach — including four different franchises and three firings — to land him the ultimate prize on Monday.

His brother Shane noted that it is common for sports networks to talk about the ups and downs of the winning team during the Stanley Cup playoffs.

But the adversity Maurice faced certainly wasn’t limited to just one series against the Edmonton Oilers, or one postseason run.

“I looked at my dad Monday night and said this isn’t about a two-month journey – this is a 29-year journey,” Shane said. “The trials and tribulations have been there for the entire 29 years.”

And that was reflected in this year’s quest for the cup.

Shane even stopped watching the Florida playoffs with his parents after a first-round game ended badly for his older brother’s team.

“I stayed at the beginning of a game against the Lightning and it was 2-0 to Tampa in short order,” he recalls. “So I left home and we never shared a bench for the playoff game again.”

“As Michael Scott from The Office would say, ‘I’m not superstitious, just a little bit stupid,’” he laughed.

Maurice would lead the Panthers to series victories against Tampa Bay, the Boston Bruins and the New York Rangers en route to a second consecutive appearance in the Stanley Cup Final.

Three games ahead against the Oilers, that’s what the Maurices wanted to celebrate.

“In game four, I told my dad to make sure you keep your mom awake because if they win, I’m going to bring the family over right away,” Shane said.

The Panthers were shut out 8-1 that night.

Before game five, Shane called his father again to remind him of the family’s intentions to come celebrate the victory after the match.

The Panthers lost again.

Understandably, the calls stopped. After all, they are ‘a bit stious’.

When the Oilers forced a winner-take-all seventh game, Shane admitted he wasn’t handling the stress very well.

“You hear all the professional athletes talking about how they don’t look at social media or anything like that,” he said. “It turns out that a large part of their family does. I stayed away from everything, online game five and beyond. It’s hard to read.”

“Paul once said it’s a lot harder for the family because we have no control over it,” he added. “Paul would say, ‘I control the scenario, so I’m in the moment. My time is passing quickly as we work towards the next point.’ While we go to work for ourselves and do our daily things. We have no escape from the impending.”

But a narrow 2-1 win in game seven on Monday night made that agonizing wait worth it.

“When the final buzzer sounded, my wife, my two children and I ran to my parents as quickly as possible,” Shane said. “My father says: ‘You didn’t call, I understood why. I knew you’d be there at the end if they won.’ It was great to be there and see my parents’ expressions.”

“It’s like everything else in life: it’s not how you start – it’s how you finish,” Denis added.

A few minutes after the cup was presented to Florida, the Maurice family’s phone rang.

It was Paul, who called from the ice and wanted to have a chat with his two idols.

“That was the one dream I always had: to win the Stanley Cup and call your mom and dad,” Maurice told NHL Network reporters. “My mother answered the phone. I got to talk to Mom and Dad tonight as a Stanley Cup Champion. Like that’s pretty good, right? Mom and dad are very happy with it.”

“I was there for the phone call and my mom’s response was, ‘You’re on the ice now, why are you calling me? There are people there you need to talk to.” It was something different,” Shane said.

With the potential for the Cup to come to town for the second time in a row from two different organizations, the Maurices noted that this would not be a coincidence.

“It speaks to the community and the people,” Shane said. “The reason Paul made that comment about Sault Ste. Marie is because of the impact Sault Ste. Marie has it out for all of us. If you talk to any friend who has left town, they all talk about how they wish they could have stayed and raised their kids there. There is a draw here.”

“Hockey is for Sault Ste. Marie an important process — it’s part of growing up,” Denis added. “It’s a pastime where you meet people who will become your friends or acquaintances for the rest of your life.”

It’s no secret that the community as a whole has made a big impression on Maurice’s successes. But Shane noted that his parents, who are both retired teachers, also deserve a lot of credit.

“It’s Paul’s ability to communicate with the players,” he said. “And I think communication starts with how you were raised. And there he learned his ability to curse.”

“From his mother, of course,” Denis laughed.

While it has yet to be confirmed whether Maurice will bring the Cup back to the Sault, his younger brother has not considered this a possibility.

“He’ll most likely find a way to make it easy for my parents to be there,” Shane said. “I don’t know what that format will look like. He could very well take it to Sault Ste. Marie for the benefit of my parents.”