Paul Maurice expected the Florida Panthers to go through some challenges this season. However, the veteran coach, in his first season with the Panthers, did not expect it to be as extreme as it's been.
Maurice joined co-hosts Dan Rosen and Shawn P. Roarke on the "NHL @TheRink" podcast this week to discuss the Panthers, specifically why they'd lost four in a row at a time when they need to win to get into the Stanley Cup Playoffs and the ups and downs of their season. Florida (37-31-7) is one point behind the Pittsburgh Penguins for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Eastern Conference following a 3-2 overtime win at the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday that ended a four-game losing streak. "There is an understanding that we've got to get to a completely different level of hard hockey here, we just do," Maurice said prior to that win. "You've seen it in almost every skilled organization comes in. They're winning games, but it takes a long time before they get over that hump to exactly how hard you've got to play every single night to truly be one of those contenders. "The Tampa Bay Lightning are] such a prime example of it. [They] had gotten to the [2015 Stanley Cup Final and the NHL app. --- Listen: New episode of NHL @TheRink
