One of the key pieces in South Beach might be out for a few games.
On Wednesday, Fox Sports 640’s Andy Slater reported that Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett is likely to miss considerable time with what is suspected to be an upper-body injury.
An update is expected following the Panthers’ practice on Wednesday in the lead-up to the third game of their Atlantic Division Semifinal series with the Tampa Bay Lightning, which is set for Thursday night.
Bennett was injured during the second period of Game 2 on Tuesday night, when he got in the way of teammate Brandon Montour’s slapshot. Bennett immediately went down the tunnel, favoring his left hand, and did not return.
The 27-year-old had playing well in the contest, scoring the game’s first goal, before picking up an assist on Vladimir Tarasenko’s tally in the first period. Bennett ended up playing 7:42, registering a plus-one rating before exiting the game prematurely.
The Panthers won the game 3-2 in overtime, thanks to Carter Verhaeghe’s fifth career playoff OT goal. Bennett also played 16:15 in Game 1 of the series on Sunday, which Florida won 3-2.
The former Calgary Flame was coming off another productive regular season with the Panthers. Bennett scored 20 goals and 41 points in 69 games, marking the third straight season he has hit the 40-point mark, with him scoring 20 goals for just the second time in his nine-year career.
In 615 career games, Bennett has scored 137 goals and 148 assists, with 44 points in 67 playoff games.
The Panthers and Lightning will meet at Amalie Arena at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday night.
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