Florida Panthers’ 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.
Panthers don’t expect Sam Bennett (upper-body) to play the remainder of the regular season.
I asked Maurice if there’s concern that Bennett would miss Game 1 of the playoffs, he said there’s no concern.
— Alex Baumgartner (@ABaumgartner91) April 8, 2025
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.
Aleksander Barkov, Gustav Forsling and Sam Reinhart are all expected to return to the lineup Tuesday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
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 Calgary Flames.
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 Ottawa Senators, who currently hold on to the No. 1 Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.
Following their Tuesday game against the Leafs, Florida hosts the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night.