Panthers’ Paul Maurice provides ‘close’ Sam Bennett update ahead of Game 2 vs. Bruins

The Florida Panthers made quick work of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round of the NHL playoffs as they won the series in five games. Now, the Panthers are taking on the Boston Bruins, and game one didn’t go so well. The Bruins cruised to a 5-1 victory in game one on the road, and the Panthers are now in a crucial spot heading into game two as they can’t drop the first two games of the series at home. One thing that would help them is getting Sam Bennett on the ice, who is questionable for the contest.

Sam Bennett suffered a hand injury during the Panthers-Lighting series and he has not played since game two of that series. He scored one goal and added an assist before that series was cut short for him. It’s unclear if we will take the ice on Wednesday for game two against the Bruins, but he is expected to be back soon regardless.

“It is one of the next three games for sure,” Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said, according to an article from NHL.com. “Nothing changes from what happened on the ice [Tuesday] unless he had a major setback. We’re not expecting that. So, he is out there; we’ll see how he is feeling. Right now, it’s just doctors signing off and those sort of things.”

Getting Sam Bennett back would be huge for the Panthers. He had a big regular season as he finished with 41 points in 69 games. He had 20 goals and 21 assists. The Bruins are a very good team and the Panthers will need all hands on deck to take them out. Game one certainly isn’t how the team envisioned this series starting.

Game two on Wednesday is a huge one. If the Bruins win and take a 2-0 series lead with the series shifting over to Boston, the Panthers are in big trouble. They would then need to win both games on the road to avoid falling into a deep hole while facing elimination. We’ll see if they can get the win on Wednesday to avoid the disastrous start to the series.

Panthers favored to win game two