It's closing in on the start of another NHL season, which means only one thing in Carolina -- it's time for coach Paul Maurice to be fired... again.

	Entering his seventh season, Paul Maurice is second only to Detroit's Scotty Bowman in tenure.

Maurice has been axed so many times by the media it's become something of a rueful joke -- both to him and the Hurricanes front office. The coach, who is second only to Detroit's Scotty Bowman for longest tenured bench bosses, doesn't give the rumors a second thought.

Maurice, who is entering the final year of his contract, has been in this situation before and he doesn't read anything into it.

"Everyone would like to have a longer-term contract but this is the third time I've gone into the last year of my contract so this is not new," said Maurice, who will enter his seventh season as coach at the age of 34. "I was concerned about things like that, especially my first two years especially at 28. You're in some ways a novelty act. I obviously couldn't rest on our record [in his early days] but we've had three winning seasons, albeit modest winning seasons. That's the first time in the history of our franchise that that has happened. We missed the playoffs by a point one year and made it the other two years. We're not a top 10 budget team. I think our team plays hard, I think it's well prepared. I stopped worrying about the rumors."

Carolina general manager Jim Rutherford said he's perplexed as to why members of the NHL media always assume Maurice will be the first coach axed at the start of each new season. Rutherford suspects it's because so many people are unfamiliar with the team. The Hurricanes receive little attention in North Carolina -- where NASCAR and college basketball are king.

"Every year he's been the coach, he's been the guy at this time of the year that everybody says will be the first to go," said Rutherford, shaking his head. "He's an easy guy to pick on. I think it's unfair. When you look at the job he's done and the circumstances, I think he's as good as any other coach. The interesting thing is the people who start the rumors, are people who don't know him. They don't even know what they're really saying."

Maurice is able to put the speculation out of his mind because of his solid relationships with Rutherford and team owner and Compuware CEO, Peter Kramanos -- relationships that have spanned more than 15 years. Even when the team has struggled, management has backed him up.

"I've been given every opportunity and I'm sure there have been times when it's been pretty close to nip and tuck," said Maurice, who has led his team to three straight winning seasons for the first time in franchise history. "What I really appreciate more than anything is that even in those times when I knew we were in trouble, the team was in trouble, I still had their support. You know how sometimes they start building a case on a guy if they're going to fire the coach? That never, ever happens in Carolina. Jimmy is honest. At the end of December, he was asked the question and he said everyone was under scrutiny because we were in and around the .500 mark. Then we went 7-0-2 at the beginning of January and played very well from then on. So, I've always appreciated, I've always gotten the support. They're going to go with me as long as they can. As long as the team moves forward and progresses, I don't spend a lot of time worrying about where my contract is at."

Rutherford said he believes in Maurice, whom he hired to lead the club on Nov. 6, 1995. At that time, Maurice was only 28 years old and by far the youngest head coach in the league.

	“	I know that people questioned me bringing him in as young as he was. But the fact of the matter is, he started coaching when he was 20. A lot of coaches start when they're 35 or 40. He was young in years but not young in coaching. ”
		— Jim Rutherford, Hurricanes GM

"I know him better than anybody because I drafted him when he was 17," said Rutherford. "I really got to know him. I know that people questioned me bringing him in as young as he was. But the fact of the matter is, he started coaching when he was 20. A lot of coaches start when they're 35 or 40. He was young in years but not young in coaching. He's a very bright guy and he really reads people well. He really has an understanding of what's going on. He fixes things very quickly. He's very perceptive and very bright."

Maurice also has proved to be resilient. He weathered the move of the franchise from Hartford, Conn., to its temporary home in Greensboro, N.C., when few fans seemed interested in embracing a club that would only stick around for two years before uprooting to Raleigh, an hour away.

Players had a difficult time adjusting to the new setup. Because of the long commute, on game days, players lived in hotels, which made them feel like they really didn't have any home games. The situation also proved uncomfortable when opposing teams stayed at the same hotel -- they would often run into each other in the elevator.

Then, there was the tragic loss of defenseman Steve Chiasson, who died in an automobile accident on the way home from a team get together after being eliminated by the Boston Bruins on May 3, 1999.

"It's tough because some of the other things we should've been working on, we were spending a lot more time making sure the players stay focused and were all right with the situation," said Rutherford of their time in Greensboro. "It's really hard to put into words because it was difficult but we have real good guys and they stuck with it. One of those years could've very easily turned into a disastrous year because all the makings were there. The players could've said, 'Let's wait until next year,' and they didn't. It's a credit to Paul, too."

Maurice added it was a matter of forging a "we're all in this together" attitude, especially when playing to very small crowds most nights.

"It's very difficult to get excited for anybody when you're playing in Greensboro," said Maurice. "That was not an experience that we're bragging about. For us to win fans over, we have to win. Chicago is an example of what happens in a great market if you don't. When we win and when there's excitement, people come to our games. I was hoping at that time that I was going to be able to keep my job long enough to use the experience as experience. It was a phenomenal learning experience. The problem is if you don't get a chance to use it, it's no good to you."

Consequently, Maurice has had that opportunity and used it to lead the franchise in a forward direction. Doing his job in the relative obscurity of North Carolina has been beneficial to both his development as a coach and the development of the young players.

"I was not under the same scrutiny that another coach would be," he said. "They made the decision that I was going to learn with the team. It was a franchise that was going to take a long time to [turn around]. We've had winning seasons the last three years and that's why I've survived. Those first three years, I was learning along with the young guys like Jeff O'Neill. One of the advantages we have in Carolina and one of the reasons it was easier for us to bring young guys in is because we're not scrutinized. The downside of that is the assessment of our team, a lot of times, is outdated. And I think that happens to me as a coach as well. I think I've improved as a coach."

	“	Because we don't have the daily media scrutiny, it's an advantage to young coaches and young players to be given time. On the other hand, I don't think people have a great understanding of our team and where it's at. ”
		— Paul Maurice, Hurricanes coach

Because other sports often fill the pages of the local newspapers, Maurice said it's more difficult for fans and outside media to get a handle on what's going on with their team.

"Because we don't have the daily media scrutiny, it's an advantage to young coaches and young players to be given time," he said. "On the other hand, I don't think people have a great understanding of our team and where it's at. Last year, USA Today had us picked [to finish] 25th. I think the headline was 'What a bland team. They don't have any names.' I was thinking, 'Geez, Ronnie Francis is a pretty good name.' At that time, we had Sandis Ozolinsh, too. So, you learn. But with 30 teams in the NHL, that's a lot of information to sort through."

Last year, the Hurricanes took a big risk by bringing in new players, many of whom were youngsters. The team was determined to sink or swim with the kids. As it turned out, the players blossomed and helped the Hurricanes beat the Bruins for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Maurice admitted to some anxious moments.

"There was a lot more concern on my part [at the beginning of last year] because we put five rookies in our lineup," he said. "We lost a good number of veterans to free agency. We had 11 new faces, NHL guys, in training camp who hadn't played a full season with our team. This year, we've had very little turnover and because our five kids survived and excelled, that's where you see the improvement coming from. I don't have the concern about where those guys are at."

Given the poor job security in pro sports, Maurice knows someday his coaching duties in Carolina could come to an end. But his GM doesn't expect it to be anytime soon.

"Paul knows he's really well protected by our organization and by me," Rutherford said. "I don't think [a contract] should be a concern. And based on other general managers telling me what they think of Paul, if he wasn't in Carolina after this year, he'll be someplace else very quick."

Nancy Marrapese-Burrell of the Boston Globe is a regular contributor to ESPN.com.