Since the arrival of Paul Maurice, the Florida Panthers have famously – or perhaps infamously – had some of the most grueling and challenging training camps in the NHL. Not that anyone is complaining, as the Panthers have been to three straight Stanley Cup Finals and enter the season riding back-to-back championships. While the camp features multiple drills designed to test the Panthers players physically and mentally, there is one drill in particular that get much of the attention during Cats Camp. It’s the exercise that Maurice chooses to end every practice with during the first week of camp. Here is how it works: All the players on the ice split up into pairs, and each twosome finds a spot along the boards, with several feet separating each group. Maurice, meanwhile, moves to the center ice faceoff dot and lines up 10 pucks along the red line. Once the pucks are in place and all the players are properly paired up, Maurice blows his whistle. Each group of two then begins battling for a puck along the boards. If it pops loose, they put it right back between them and get back to work. When one player takes the puck, the other immediately battles back for it. Someone has to have the puck at all times. Eventually, Maurice blows his whistle a second time, and the fighting pairs then take off and skate a few laps around the ice. It’s brutal and it’s exhausting. Each duo takes a turn, and after every group of two has had a battle, Maurice fires one of the pucks down the ice. Then they go again, and again, until all ten pucks are gone. Florida’s assistant coaches can be heard barking at the players during the drill from different spots on the ice, but not Maurice. He stood in his spot at center ice, stick in his hand, eyes darting around the rink, not saying a word. While watching this happen on Thursday at the Baptist Health IcePlex in Fort Lauderdale, I found myself wondering what was going through Maurice’s head while he was down there. Is he thinking about the drill? Is he thinking about the video sessions coming up after practice? Is he thinking about what he wants for dinner? So, when practice was over, I asked him. “I watch,” Maurice said. “I’m looking for a player to jump out either way. I'm looking for the guy that goes really hard at the end and not so hard early. I’m watching their faces to see what kind of level of pain they're in. We've got some people yelling and encouraging. I know how hard they're going; they're going as hard as they can, so I'm showing silent respect for it.” This is year four for Maurice and his staff, so year four of the Panthers being asked to endure this drill. The experience has changed quite a bit, for both the coaches and players, from the first season Maurice lined up the pucks until now. Perhaps expectedly, if you know and follow the Panthers, the team has adapted to and now embraces the challenge that Maurice presents them. We’ll see if it benefits them this season the same way it has over the past three. Considering how this team works, with the players holding each other accountable and setting a high standard for hard work and effort, another one of Maurice’s intense training camps is right in their comfort zone. “It's good to have encouragement,” Maurice said. “In the first year, you were barking at them because they weren't at the level they needed to be at. Now they are, in that state, so the last thing they need is me screaming at them. They don't need it. They drive.” LATEST STORIES FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS - FLORIDA REPORT: Panthers Fear Captain Aleksander Barkov Could Have ACL Injury [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/report-panthers-fear-captain-aleksander-barkov-could-have-acl-injury] Daniil Tarasov Turns Away 47 Shots; Early Positive Results For Panthers Backup Netminder [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/players/daniil-tarasov-turns-away-47-shots-shows-early-positive-results-for-panthers-backup-netminder] Panthers captain Sasha Barkov injured during training camp practice [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/panthers-captain-sasha-barkov-injured-during-training-camp-practice] Young Panthers earn shocking comeback victory over veteran-filled Hurricanes squad in Raleigh [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/young-panthers-earn-shocking-comeback-victory-over-veteran-filled-hurricanes-squad-in-raleigh] Programming plan announced for Florida Panthers game broadcasts on Scripps Sports [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/programming-plan-announced-for-florida-panthers-game-on-scripps-sports]
