TAMPERE, Finland -- Paul Maurice and Pete DeBoer have been reminiscing for more than 25 minutes at a Tampere cafe when the conversation turns from the beginnings of their nearly 40-year friendship and influences in their coaching careers to the reason they are in this city in southern Finland.
Maurice’s Florida Panthers are facing DeBoer’s Dallas Stars in the 2024 NHL Global Series Finland presented by Fastenal. The Panthers won 6-4 on Friday, in the first of the two games at Nokia Arena. The teams will meet again there Saturday (Noon ET; Victory+, SCRIPPS, NHLN, SN1) before heading their separate ways for at least the rest of the regular season.
As close as Maurice and DeBoer are and as easily as the conversation and laughs flow between them, though, coaching against each other has never been part of the fun in their relationship.
“This is more special for me,” Maurice said of catching up with DeBoer. “It’s not the coaching against each other because I have absolutely no interest in my team beating his and less in his team beating mine. There’s no animosity.”
The feeling is mutual.
Maurice, 57, and DeBoer, 56, have been friends since they were junior teammates with Windsor of the Ontario Hockey League from 1985-88. And though they usually go months without seeing each other, they will text or talk on the phone to keep up on each other’s lives until their schedules bring their teams together. This week, it happened to be in Tampere.
“We all have friends like that where you don’t have to see each other for a very long time and it feels like you pick up right where you left off regardless of how much time goes between actual visits,” DeBoer said. “But we speak, we talk hockey. It’s been a great journey.”
Maurice, a defenseman who was selected by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 12th round (No. 252) of the 1985 NHL Draft, got into coaching in 1987-88 as an assistant with Windsor after an eye injury ended his playing career. DeBoer, a forward who was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 12th round (No. 237) of the 1988 NHL Draft, played professionally for three seasons (1989-91) with Milwaukee of the International Hockey League before deciding to pursue his law degree.
He lived with Maurice while attending law school at the University of Windsor.
“At no point in time do you think there’s a career path in that,” Maurice said. “You’re going to law school. I’m thinking, ‘OK. I’m an assistant coach of a junior hockey team that’s making 150 bucks a week, which was pretty good. … And then things just took off.”
When Maurice landed his first head coaching job with Detroit of the OHL in 1993, he asked DeBoer for help as a part-time assistant. When Maurice left to become an assistant with the Hartford Whalers in 1995, DeBoer succeeded him as Detroit’s head coach.
Maurice was only 28 when the Whalers promoted him to head coach 12 games into the 1995-96 season. DeBoer was hired to his first NHL coaching job by the Panthers in 2008 when he was 40. Their friendship has continued throughout their lengthy NHL coaching careers.
In 27 seasons with the Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes, Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets and Panthers, Maurice is second in NHL history with 1,861 regular-season games coached, behind Scotty Bowman (2,141), and fourth in wins with 877. In 17 seasons with the Panthers, New Jersey Devils, San Jose Sharks, Vegas Golden Knights and Stars, DeBoer is 22nd in League history with 1,189 regular-season games coached and 21st with 619 wins.
“I was thinking about the different roles we’ve had,” DeBoer said. “We were teammates in Windsor. You were my captain. Then, I played for you when you coached, your first coaching job. Then, you were my landlord, which is a whole story. Then, you were my roommate. Then, you were my boss when you hired me as [an assistant]. Then, obviously, groomsmen, godfather to one of my kids.”
Maurice and DeBoer each married women they met in Windsor. Their wives and families became close, too.