Panthers HC Paul Maurice sends clear message ahead of Game 4 against Hurricanes

Paul Maurice and the Florida Panthers are sitting pretty in their Eastern Conference Finals series against the Carolina Hurricanes.

They currently possess a 3-0 stranglehold and can sweep away Carolina for the second time in three years. Unlike their matchup in 2023, this year has been an absolute beatdown. The Panthers have outscored the Hurricanes by a combined 16-4 margin and have had their way physically all series long.

Despite how one-sided it’s been thus far, the job is not finished, and head coach Paul Maurice knows that. The veteran bench boss is well aware that the fourth win in a playoff series is always the hardest, so he expects a desperate effort from Carolina on Monday night.

Team reporter Jameson Olive shared some of Maurice’s pre-game comments on X (formerly Twitter).

“They’ve got full desperation on their side. We’ve got full desire on our side,” Maurice said.

Paul Maurice signed a multi-year contract extension with the Florida Panthers at the start of the 2024-25 season, though the details of said deal were not revealed.

Paul Maurice provided several lineup updates ahead of Game 4

The Florida Panthers had a few question marks in regard to their lineup heading into Game 4.

Sam Reinhart, Niko Mikkola, and AJ Greer were all game-time calls, dealing with respective injuries. Paul Maurice gave the update during his pregame media availability that all three players will be sidelined on Monday night.

Team reporter Jameson Olive shared it on X.

“Reinhart, Mikkola, and Greer are all out for Game 4. If the series continues, Maurice says he expects they’d be good to return later in the series. All considered day to day,” Olive wrote.

Forwards Jesper Boqvist, Nico Sturm, and defenseman Uvis Balinskis will enter the lineup in place of the three injured Panthers. While it’s not ideal for Florida to be without several regulars, they’ve displayed for years now how deep of a team they are and that anyone can contribute on any given night.

Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Panthers and Hurricanes is set to go down on Monday night in Florida. The puck drops at 8 p.m. EST at Amerant Bank Arena.

About the author

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alt=”Jackson Weber” height=”72″ width=”72″>

Jackson Weber is an NHL journalist at Sportskeeda with a Bcomm degree in Business and Sport Management from the University of Guelph.

Jackson has grown up as a lifelong Pittsburgh Penguins fan. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are his all-time favorite players. Watching the Penguins win the Stanley Cup three times is an experience that Jackson will never forget. Years later, you realize how rare it is to see your favorite team win even once, so three championships were just incredible.

When not watching, playing, or writing about sports, Jackson loves to cook and is passionate about health and nutrition.

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