Christine Bumstead once took Panthers coach Paul Maurice hunting. And her coaching career took off
The Florida Panthers brought a female coach in for training camp to help out for a few days
By TIM REYNOLDS
Published - Sep 23, 2024, 07:17 AM ET
Last Updated - Dec 16, 2024, 07:01 PM EST
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Christine Bumstead’s path toward being an assistant coach in a preseason game for the reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers started in a most unusual way.
She went deer hunting.
Her journey took off when hockey — and the rest of the world — had stopped in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Paul Maurice, then the coach of the Winnipeg Jets, knew Bumstead’s father and decided to join him on a hunting trip. On the way there, she and Maurice talked hockey, talked philosophy, talked systems. The drive took 25 minutes. Maurice was blown away.
“We got out of the car and I went, ‘Oh, that’s a coach,’” Maurice said.
