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Sam Bennett

Panthers To Focus On Extending Pending Free Agents

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ESPN’s Kevin Weekes tweeted today that he expects the Florida Panthers to turn their attention to their pending unrestricted free agents after missing out on signing forward Patrick Kane. The Panthers didn’t have much available cap space to sign the three-time Stanley Cup champion for this season and could face a shortage of it next summer when they try to negotiate long-term extensions with some of the top free agents available.

Sam Reinhart, Brandon Montour, and Gustav Forsling are all set to hit the market on July 1st, 2024, and could take a sizeable chunk of the $28.8MM in cap space the Panthers are projected to have available next summer.

Reinhart has scored at least 22 goals in six consecutive seasons and is coming off back-to-back 30-goal campaigns. He is currently on pace for the first 100-point season of his career, although it is early in the season. But if the 28-year-old can keep up a pace close to that he could be looking at a long-term deal in the range of $8MM-9MM annually.

Montour on the other hand is a difficult projection to make. He had 73 points last season in 80 games but has never topped 40 points in any other season during his eight-year NHL career. He missed the Panthers’ first 16 games of the season and has had a slow start offensively with just a single assist in five games thus far. He will most likely see a sharp increase on his next contract from the $3.5MM cap hit that he currently carries, but much of his future earning potential will be decided by the direction the rest of this season takes.

Forsling is the final high-profile free agent the Panthers will need to sign next summer and after a pair of solid seasons in Florida will be looking to cash in. The 27-year-old plays in all situations and has really seen his offensive game improve over the last couple of years. He is currently carrying a cap hit that is a shade over $2.6MM and could command an additional $3MM-$4MM per season given that he has proved he can be a top-pairing defenseman for the Panthers.

Florida will be hard-pressed to sign all three players as they will have other areas of need to consider going forward. Aaron Ekblad will be a free agent in the summer of 2025 as will Sam Bennett and Carter Verhaeghe.

Sam Bennett To Return To Panthers Lineup

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Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett will return to the team’s lineup tonight, according to head coach Paul Maurice. Bennett has been limited to just one game and 7:54 TOI this season due to injury.

The 27-year-old center will shift into a third-line pivot role in Maurice’s lineup, pushing Kevin Stenlund to the fourth line. He’ll play in between Nick Cousins and Eetu Luostarinen, two players looking to increase their productivity this season as they combine for just four points.

Production hasn’t been an issue for Bennett since he arrived in Florida. After scoring 20 points in his first 15 games in Sunrise, Bennett scored 28 goals in 2021-22. Then he had 40 points in just 63 games last season, to go alongside 15 points in 20 postseason games.

The Panthers have survived their injury issues to start this season, and currently rank second in the Atlantic Division with a .654 points percentage. While there was some worry that the team would stumble after reaching the Stanley Cup Final earlier this year, it appears such worries were premature.

The return of Bennett for today’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks will only strengthen what is already a quality Panthers team.

Atlantic Notes: McCabe, Klingberg, Bennett, Montour, McAvoy, Czarnik

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Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake McCabe will draw back into the lineup Friday against the Calgary Flames after missing six games with a groin injury, head coach Sheldon Keefe informed reporters today (via David Alter of Sports Illustrated). The shutdown defenseman is expected to factor in on the second pairing, playing on his off-side along 40-year-old veteran Mark Giordano.

McCabe sustained the injury on his first shift in an October 26 game against the Dallas Stars, skating only ten seconds before leaving the game. The 2023 trade deadline acquisition from the Chicago Blackhawks hasn’t registered a point yet this season and has a -4 rating in seven games, and his possession metrics have dipped significantly (albeit in a small sample) from last season’s strong play.

That dip can’t be entirely attributed to him, however. His partner for most of the season before exiting the lineup was John Klingberg, who Keefe said will not suit up against Calgary as he deals with an undisclosed injury. Klingberg has five assists through 13 games but has posted a -8 rating, including two -3 performances in his last three games.

Klingberg’s logged the worst defensive numbers of any Maple Leafs defender this season and will be looking for a reset once he gets back to full health. McCabe, meanwhile, has excelled this season in small increments away from Klingberg – his pairing with the now-injured Timothy Liljegren has been the Leafs’ best at controlling shot quality this season, posting an expected goals share of 58.1% in nearly 50 minutes together, per MoneyPuck.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:

  • Things are looking up in the Sunshine State for the Florida Panthers, as they sit second in the Atlantic Division with a .625 points percentage. They’re about to get some reinforcements, too, as head coach Paul Maurice said today that center Sam Bennett is possible (but unlikely) to return from a lower-body injury on Sunday against the Blackhawks. Even if he doesn’t return to the lineup this weekend, that likely means Bennett could factor in next Tuesday against the San Jose Sharks. The feisty secondary scorer has missed all but one game this season due to separate lower-body injuries, last appearing October 30 against the Boston Bruins and playing just 7:54. The 27-year-old had 16 goals and 40 points in 63 games last season and will immediately help bolster their top six upon returning. 22-year-old Anton Lundell, who’s filled in as their second-line center in Bennett’s absence, has scored just once in 12 games.
  • Florida is also likely to get defenseman Brandon Montour back soon, with Maurice saying the two-way defender could make his season debut as early as next week. Montour, who underwent shoulder surgery following the Panthers’ run to the 2023 Stanley Cup Final, was initially expected back around training camp but had his recovery timeline extended over the summer. The 29-year-old finished 12th in Norris Trophy voting last season, exploding for a career-high 73 points in 80 games and adding eight goals in 21 playoff games in Florida’s run to the Final. Florida’s defense has held up surprisingly well in his (and Aaron Ekblad’s) absence, but his return to action is still something to look forward to.
  • Another big-time defender returning to action imminently is Boston Bruins star Charlie McAvoy, who has completed his four-game suspension for an illegal check to the head of Panthers defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson and is eligible to return to the lineup Saturday against the Canadiens. McAvoy had easily been the Bruins’ best defenseman through nine games, scoring two goals and six assists with a +6 rating while averaging 23:52 per game. McAvoy’s return to the lineup, along with shutdown defender Derek Forbort’s return from injury, meant the Bruins were able to return depth defenseman Parker Wotherspoon to AHL Providence earlier today.
  • Detroit Red Wings forward Austin Czarnik will be unavailable for Saturday’s game against the Blue Jackets for undisclosed reasons, per head coach Derek Lalonde. Czarnik has made 11 appearances for the Red Wings this year but has recorded just one assist and a -3 rating in less than nine minutes per game of ice time. The 30-year-old is in the second season of a two-year, two-way deal carrying a $762.5K cap hit and will be an unrestricted free agent next summer.

Panthers’ Sam Bennett Out Week-To-Week

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The Panthers have listed forward Sam Bennett as being out week-to-week with a lower-body injury, head coach Paul Maurice told Jameson Olive of the Panthers’ official site on Friday.

Bennett, 27, had missed the first seven games of the season with a lower-body injury and sustained a second one just 7:54 into his return to play on October 30 against the Boston Bruins. Bennett needed help exiting the playing surface and could not put weight on his left leg after an awkward fall with Bruins defenseman Hampus Lindholm behind the net in the second period of Florida’s overtime loss.

The Panthers have been dealing with injuries all season long, and it’s reflected in their up-and-down 5-3-1 record through nine games. The defending Eastern Conference champions have been bolstered by solid play in the crease from both Sergei Bobrovsky and Anthony Stolarz, although the latter has only made one appearance.

Missing Bennett certainly won’t help jumpstart their depth scoring, which has surprisingly been an issue through the first few weeks of the season. Only four forwards are operating at over 0.5 points per game – their entire top line of Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart and Evan Rodrigues, as well as Matthew Tkachuk on the second line. Players like Carter Verhaeghe (three goals, one assist in nine games) and Eetu Luostarinen (one assist in nine games) have struggled, and it’s not helping matters with both Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour still sidelined on the blue line.

The Ontario-born Bennett is in the third season of a four-year, $17.7MM extension he signed with the Panthers in 2021. He was limited to 63 games last season with injuries but recorded 40 points – a career-high 52-point pace across 82 games. He excelled in the Panthers’ run to the Stanley Cup Final, too, racking up 15 points in 20 games.

Panthers Injury Notes: Bennett, Ekman-Larsson, Rodrigues

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The Florida Panthers have shared injury updates to three recently hurt players, announcing that Oliver Ekman-Larsson is likely to play, Evan Rodrigues is hopeful, and Sam Bennett is likely out for the team’s Thursday night matchup against the Detroit Red Wings.

More specifically, head coach Paul Maurice said that Bennett will miss a little more time than a typical day-to-day designation would suggest, although the injury isn’t as severe as the one that delayed Bennett’s start to the season.

Bennett’s injury is a tough one to stomach. The 27-year-old centerman was in his first game back from injury but hurt his left leg – seemingly his left ankle – in a net-front scrum with Boston’s Hampus Lindholm. He is now set to miss even more time, making this season the sixth time that Bennett has appeared in fewer than 75 of his team’s games through his nine-year NHL career.

The injury is especially tough given how successful Bennett has been with the Panthers. He tallied a modest 40 points in 63 games last season but exploded for 15 points and 60 penalty minutes in 20 playoff games – operating as a key piece of Florida’s run to the Stanley Cup Finals. He set his career-high in scoring in the 2021-22 season – his first full year with the Panthers – when he scored 28 goals and 49 points in 71 games.

Luckily, it doesn’t seem like Florida will be missing any other key pieces. Ekman-Larsson, who has three points in eight games this season, is good-to-go after taking a sucker punch from Charlie McAvoy. The punch earned McAvoy a four-game suspension that he’s in the process of serving. As for Rodrigues, Maurice said that the team was taking precaution in holding him out of Wednesday’s practice, and he should be good for Thursday night’s game.

Atlantic Notes: Bennett, Grzelcyk, Finley

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David Dwork of The Hockey News is reporting that Sam Bennett of the Florida Panthers has left tonight’s game against the Boston Bruins with what appears to be a left leg injury. Bennett was returning to the Panthers after missing the first seven games with a lower-body injury.

The 27-year-old was battling for position with Bruins defenseman Hampus Lindholm when Lindholm appeared to put his skate on the back of Bennett’s left leg. Lindholm’s weight then appeared to crash down on Bennett’s ankle. Bennett went down grabbing at his lower leg, as he rolled on the ice in pain. The Panthers helped Bennett off the ice as he put no weight on his left leg before limping to the team’s dressing room.

In other notes from the Atlantic Division:

  • The Boston Bruins have announced that defenseman Matt Grzelcyk has left tonight’s game and will not return after sustaining an upper-body injury. Not much is known currently about the injury, but Grzelcyk didn’t play after the halfway mark of the first period in the Bruins game against the Florida Panthers. The 29-year-old has had a bit of a slow start to his eighth season with the Bruins as he has just a single goal in nine games thus far.
  • CapFriendly is reporting that the Tampa Bay Lightning have activated forward Jack Finley off the season-opening injury reserve and assigned him to the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL. The 21-year-old Finley scored 12 goals and had 9 assists in his rookie season in the AHL last year as he dressed in 67 games for the Crunch. Finley could make an impact in the NHL in the coming seasons as it is hard to ignore his ability to get around the ice with his 6’6” 223-pound frame. For now, he will remain a depth option in the AHL as he attempts to develop the offensive side of his game.

Sam Bennett A Game-Time Decision, Removed From IR

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Update 5:54pm: David Dwork of The Hockey News tweeted that Bennett will indeed make his season debut tonight against the Boston Bruins.

1:42pm: The Florida Panthers have removed Sam Bennett from injured reserve and dubbed him as a game-time decision for their Monday night matchup against the Boston Bruins. Bennett has missed the entirety of the season up to this point with a lower-body injury. He has been on the fringe of returning to play since the team’s October 27th matchup and, with an official removal from IR, seems poised to finally make his season debut.

Bennett tallied 16 goals and 40 points in 63 games with Florida last season, adding 15 points in 20 playoff games. He set his career-high in scoring in the year prior, netting 28 goals and 49 points. The former fourth-overall pick is entering his third full season with the Panthers. His career has been marked by limitations due to injury, with Bennett only playing 75 or more games in a season three times through his nine-year career. He has the potential to add a fourth season to that marker this year if he manages to play in all of Florida’s games for the rest of the year. Now 27, Bennett has accrued 546 career NHL games, tallying 244 career points and 480 penalty minutes.

Who steps out of the lineup to make way for Bennett will be interesting to see. The Panthers have had a relatively unproductive fourth line, with Kevin Stenlund’s two goals being the only points scored by the line. Each of Stenlund, Steven Lorentz, and William Lockwood can be deployed flexibly, which should work well for the returning centerman. The return could also impact Eetu Luostarinen, who has served as the centerman between Matthew Tkachuk and Carter Verhaeghe – the line that Bennett manned for over 300 minutes of last season. With Bennett’s return, Florida will be one step closer to icing the lineup that willed them to the Stanley Cup Finals last season.

Panthers Notes: Ekblad, Montour, Barkov, Bennett

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Panthers defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour both skated today and are expected to take part in practice with the team on Sunday in non-contact jerseys, reports Florida Hockey Now’s George Richards.  Both players played through shoulder injuries in the playoffs, undergoing surgery soon after the Stanley Cup Final concluded.  The original expectation was that both players would be back sometime around mid-December.  However, head coach Paul Maurice suggested that the timeline could be moved up a bit, noting the veterans could be back by the end of next month which would certainly be a big boost with Ekblad and Montour being two of their top blueliners.  Ekblad is currently on LTIR while Montour is on regular injured reserve.

More from Florida:

  • The Panthers will welcome their captain back to the lineup tonight as play-by-play voice Steve Goldstein relays (Twitter link) that Aleksander Barkov will suit up after missing last game with an illness. The 28-year-old is off to a nice start to his season with six points in his first five appearances while averaging over 21 minutes a night.  Florida sent Mackie Samoskevich back to AHL Charlotte yesterday, signifying that they expected Barkov would be cleared to play today against Seattle.
  • While Sam Bennett also skated today, he will not suit up tonight, notes Bally Sports Florida’s Katie Engelson (Twitter link). The 27-year-old has yet to play so far this season due to a lingering lower-body injury.  Maurice indicated that Bennett remains listed as day-to-day but is close to returning; he is expected to accompany the Panthers on their upcoming road trip.  He’s coming off his second straight 40-point year despite missing 19 games due to injuries last season and his eventual return will certainly bolster Florida’s top six.

Atlantic Notes: Petry, Bennett, Samoskevich

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Detroit Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde told the media, including MLive’s Ansar Khan, that veteran defenseman Jeff Petry is healthy and will play in tomorrow’s game in Boston. Petry has been out with a lower-body injury and has not played since October 21st.

Petry’s return to the Red Wings lineup again puts into focus the logjam of quality defensemen the team is currently dealing with. With Petry healthy, a veteran such as Justin Holl or Olli Määtta would need to exit the lineup in order for Petry to play. Petry himself has been a healthy scratch at times this season, and it’s possible this impressive blueline depth and the ability for Lalonde to rotate his defensive lineup has helped contribute to Detroit’s stellar start to the season.

Some other notes from the Atlantic Division:

  • Florida Panthers team reporter Katie Engleson relays word from head coach Paul Maurice who says forward Sam Bennett and defenseman Dmitry Kulikov are game-time decisions for the team’s Saturday game against the Seattle Kraken. Yesterday, we covered Bennett nearing a return to play and now Maurice has clarified his status, saying he’s not guaranteed to be in the lineup on Saturday. As for Kulikov, he’s occupied an important second-pairing role next to Niko Mikkola and any injury-related absence from him would represent a significant blow to a Panthers blueline already lacking in depth.
  • Florida Hockey Now’s George Richards reports that the Panthers have returned forward Mackie Samoskevich to the team’s AHL affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers. Samoskevich, the team’s 2021 first-round pick, broke camp with the Panthers but was sent down for the Checkers’ road trip to Toronto. He was recalled on the 25th and played 8:16 in the Panthers’ last game. Now he returns to the AHL for what will be his rookie AHL campaign.

East Notes: Bennett, Guhle, Bruins Injuries, Pysyk

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The Florida Panthers got some good news this morning. Center Sam Bennett has returned to practice for the first time this regular season, per Florida Hockey Now’s George Richards. Bennett sustained a lower-body injury during the preseason that’s kept him out through six games thus far.

If he can get back into playing shape within the next 48 hours, he could make his season debut Saturday against the Kraken. That would likely coincide with a return to the lineup for captain Aleksander Barkov, says Richards, who missed the Panthers’ Tuesday contest against the Sharks with an illness. Bennett, 27, is in the third season of a four-year, $17.7MM extension signed with the Panthers in 2021. Last season was arguably the best of his career, logging a career-high 17:24 while producing 16 goals, 24 assists and 40 points in 63 games. The 2014 fourth-overall pick also finished fourth on the Panthers in playoff scoring, notching five goals and ten assists for 15 points in 20 games.

Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference this Thursday morning:

  • Canadiens defenseman Kaiden Guhle was a full participant in practice this morning and is nearing a return from an upper-body injury, notes The Athletic’s Arpon Basu. He will not enter the lineup tonight against the Blue Jackets, however, TVA’s Renaud Lavoie says. Guhle, who had an assist and a +4 rating through three games, has not played since October 17 against Minnesota. The Habs have gone 2-1-0 in his absence despite injuries also sidelining blueliner David Savard, forcing the emergency recall of Gustav Lindström from AHL Laval. The 16th overall pick in 2020 is in the second year of his three-year, entry-level contract, which counts $863K against the cap.
  • Despite still being on assignment to AHL Providence, Boston Bruins forward Jesper Boqvist is practicing with the NHL squad today, Bruins independent reporter Joe Haggerty relays. That comes with the news that forwards Jakub Lauko and Milan Lucic are both listed as day-to-day with injuries and will miss between one and two weeks, head coach Jim Montgomery told reporters today. That means recalling Boqvist (or signing PTO invite Danton Heinen) will be necessary to fill out the Bruins’ roster for tonight’s game against Anaheim, as the team has just 11 healthy forwards even after recalling Patrick Brown from Providence this morning.
  • Another unsigned player still with a team on a PTO is defenseman Mark Pysyk, who has returned to practice after sustaining a lower-body injury in preseason, relays Pittsburgh Hockey Now’s Shelly Anderson. The 31-year-old spent last season under contract with Detroit but missed the entire campaign with an Achilles injury. He last suited up in an NHL game nearly 18 months ago, logging 12:51 in an April 29, 2022, game for the Sabres against the Blackhawks.

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