<p><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/florida-panthers/line-combinations">Florida Panthers’ </a>Head Coach Paul Maurice told reporters Tuesday that forward Sam Bennett is out with an upper-body injury and is expected to miss the remainder of the regular reason. However, Maurice says there’s no concern that Bennett would return for Game 1 of the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. </p>


<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Panthers don’t expect Sam Bennett (upper-body) to play the remainder of the regular season. </p>
<p>I asked Maurice if there’s concern that Bennett would miss Game 1 of the playoffs, he said there’s no concern.</p>
<p>— Alex Baumgartner (@ABaumgartner91) <a href="https://twitter.com/ABaumgartner91/status/1909623395118965171?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 8, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
<p> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>



<p>Bennett is one of many Panthers who are dealing with injuries as the regular season winds down. Forward Matthew Tkachuk has been out since Feb. 8 after injuring himself during the 4 Nations Face-Off. Defenseman Dmitry Kulikov hasn’t played since March 16. </p><div class="injected-ad injected-video" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="0" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="140"></div>



<p>Aleksander Barkov, Gustav Forsling and Sam Reinhart are all expected to return to the lineup Tuesday night against the <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/">Toronto Maple Leafs</a>. </p>



<p>The 28-year-old Bennett has 25 goals and 25 assists for 50 points and 88 penalty minutes in 74 regular-season games this season, hitting career highs in assists and points. Through 11 NHL seasons, the 2014 No. 4 overall pick has 162 goals and 173 assists for 335 points and 668 penalty minutes in 689 career games with the Panthers and<a href="https://flamesnation.ca/"> Calgary Flames</a>. </p>



<p>The Panthers have struggled recently, losing five straight and are 3-6-1 in their last 10 games. Going into Tuesday, the team is 44-29-4 with 92 points, third in the Atlantic Division. While they’re six points back of the Leafs for first in the division, they’re also just two points ahead of the <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/ottawa-senators/line-combinations">Ottawa Senators</a>, who currently hold on to the No. 1 Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. </p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="1" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="156"></div>



<p>Following their Tuesday game against the Leafs, Florida hosts the <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/detroit-red-wings/line-combinations">Detroit Red Wings</a> on Thursday night. </p>
