FORT LAUDERDALE – The Florida Panthers are still playing the waiting game.
Heading into a big matchup with the division-rival Boston Bruins on Wednesday, the statues of Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand and Anton Lundell remain up in the air as all three forwards are considered day-to-day.
"There's a chance they all play tomorrow; there's a chance none of them play tomorrow,” head coach Paul Maurice said after Tuesday’s optional practice at Baptist Health IcePlex.
Marchand, who missed seven games last month with an undisclosed injury, has sat out the last two games due to an apparent reaggravation, while Lundell, who skated on Monday in a no-contact jersey, has missed the last three games with an upper-body injury.
The latest player to join Florida’s list of injured players, Bennett suffered an upper-body injury during the first period of Monday’s 5-3 loss to the Buffalo Sabres and did not return.
“We just didn’t know how serious it was at the time,” Maurice said of Bennett’s injury. “It was serious enough that he didn’t feel right and we needed a day to 48 hours to get a handle on how serious it was. There’s as much science as we can put on these things. None of this is feel. We’re not messing around with a player.”
Huge pieces of the puzzle for the Panthers, Marchand ranks second on the team in scoring with 50 points (25G, 25A), while Bennett sits third with 42 points (16G, 26A). Taking on an increased role this season, Lundell boasts 36 points (15G, 21A) and has won a team-high 489 faceoffs.
With Bennett and Lundell both out, the Panthers are currently without the four centers that started Game 6 of the Stanley Cup as Aleksander Barkov (more on him in a bit) and Tomas Nosek are still working their way back from offseason knee surgeries.
As of Feb. 2, the Panthers have a collective 318 man games lost due to injuries.
“That was a first last night,” Maurice said of the team’s injured core of centers.
For the next batch of injury updates, stay tuned for tomorrow’s game preview.
To be in the building when the Panthers host the Bruins, click HERE.
With two games left before the break, Florida sits at 28-24-3.
BENNETT GETS THE CALL
This bit of news bodes well for Bennett’s health.
On Tuesday, the grizzled center was named to Team Canada’s roster for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 after an injury to Tampa Bay Lightning forward Anthony Cirelli.
Deserving of a spot on Team Canadia’s initial roster, Bennett has logged 42 points (19G, 23A) in 55 games this season and is the league’s reigning Conn Smythe Trophy winner.
In addition to helping the Panthers win back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2024 and 2025, Bennett, a proven big-game performer, helped Canada win last year's inagural 4 Nations Face-Off.
Sending nearly half a roster overseas, Bennett is one of 10 Panthers set to compete at the Olympics, joining Uvis Balinskis (Latvia), Sandis Vilmanis (Latvia), Lundell (Finland), Eetu Luostarinen (Finland), Niko Mikkola (Finland), Sam Reinhart (Canada), Marchand (Canada), Gustav Forsling (Sweden) and Matthew Tkachuk (USA).
Canada's first game of the Olympics will be against Czechia on Feb. 11
BARKOV SIGHTING
It’s always a good day when you see the captain on the ice.
Taking part in this morning’s optional practice, Barkov continues to make progress in his long road to recovery after offseason surgery to repair ACL and MCL injuries in his knee.
