There is some good news on the horizon for the Panthers on the injury front in goal as the team announced today (Twitter link) that they’ve assigned Mack Guzda to Charlotte of the AHL.
The 22-year-old is in his first professional season after signing with Florida last year as an undrafted free agent. Although Guzda has been up for the better part of the last month, he has yet to see any NHL action, instead serving as a backup netminder. He has suited up in 26 games with the Checkers this season, posting a 2.86 GAA along with a .899 SV%.
Guzda’s demotion means that Sergei Bobrovsky has been cleared to return from the undisclosed injury that has kept him out of the lineup for the last week and a half; George Richards of Florida Hockey Now notes (Twitter link) that the veteran will serve as the backup tomorrow against Washington. While it might seem odd that Bobrovsky won’t start right away, Alex Lyon is coming off a career-high 56 saves last night against Ottawa and has won his last five games. If nothing else, they’ll have a capable second netminder behind him as they look to lock down a Wild Card spot in the final week of the season.