Bennett (upper body) is set to play Thursday against New Jersey, per Jameson Olive of the Panthers' official site.
Bennett missed Tuesday's 4-1 loss to New Jersey. Before that absence, he was red hot, recording six goals and 10 points across his past nine appearances. Bennett is projected to play alongside Jesper Boqvist and Matthew Tkachuk in his return.
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Panthers' Sam Bennett: Considered game-time decision
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Bennett (upper body) is considered a game-time decision for Thursday's matchup against the Devils, Colby Guy of The Palm Beach Post reports.
Bennett was unavailable for Tuesday's game against New Jersey due to an upper-body injury, and it's not yet clear whether he'll be able to suit up in Thursday's rematch. If he's unavailable Thursday, Jesper Boqvist is a candidate to remain in a top-six role.
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Panthers' Sergei Bobrovsky: First goalie off ice Thursday
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Bobrovsky is slated to patrol the home crease versus New Jersey on Thursday, Colby Guy of The Palm Beach Post reports.
Bobrovsky was the first goaltender off the ice at morning skate, a usual indicator that he will get the start. He was first off Tuesday and did not get the start, but it seems likely that he'll be in the net Thursday. Bobrovsky has won five straight games, boosting his record to 8-2-1 with a 2.95 GAA and an .895 save percentage. The Devils are averaging 3.47 goals, good for ninth overall in the NHL.
Panthers' Sam Reinhart: Nets power-play goal in loss
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Reinhart scored a power-play goal on two shots, added two PIM and logged two hits in Tuesday's 4-1 loss to the Devils.
Reinhart got the Panthers on the board in the second period, but that was their lone goal of the game. The 29-year-old is on an eight-game point streak, earning seven goals and five assists in that span. For the season, he's at 12 tallies, 24 points, 41 shots on net and a plus-12 rating across 16 appearances. Somehow, he's at a 29.3 shooting percentage, which is even higher than his 24.5 percent mark from 2023-24. Reinhart has the talent to carry an elite rate of efficiency, but there are plenty of concerns about sustainability for anything over 20 percent.
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Panthers' Sam Bennett: Questionable for Thursday
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Bennett (upper body) is improving but remains in doubt ahead of Thursday's clash with New Jersey, Jameson Olive of the Panthers' official site reports.
Head coach Paul Maurice told reporters they would have to see how Bennett is feeling at Thursday's game-day skate, so don't be surprised to see the winger labeled a game-time decision prior to puck drop. Through 15 games this season, the 28-year-old Ontario native is converting at a point-per-game pace, registering nine goals and six helpers, including four power-play points. If Bennett can't play Thursday, look for Jesper Boqvist to remain in a top-six role.
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Panthers' Spencer Knight: Downed by Devils
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Knight stopped 20 of 23 shots in Tuesday's 4-1 loss to New Jersey, with the Devils' final goal getting scored into an empty net.
The Panthers had trouble solving Jacob Markstrom in the other crease, giving Knight no margin for error even though he made some big saves to keep things close. The 23-year-old goalie has made six appearances this season as Sergei Bobrovsky's understudy, going 3-2-0 with a 2.85 GAA and .897 save percentage.
Bennett (upper body) won't play Tuesday versus the Devils.
Bennett played 15:14 in Saturday's 4-3 shootout win over the Flyers, so it's unclear when he sustained the injury. His absence is a big one for the Panthers -- Bennett has 10 points over his last nine outings. Mackie Samoskevich will enter the lineup and Anton Lundell is projected for a larger role to cover Bennett's absence.
Knight will guard the cage at home versus the Devils on Tuesday, Jameson Olive of the Panthers' official site reports.
After Sergei Bobrovsky was the first goalie to leave the ice at Tuesday's game-day skate, all signs pointed to the veteran getting the nod but it seems Knight will go instead against New Jersey. In five outings this year, the 23-year-old backstop is 3-1-0 with a 2.79 GAA and .902 save percentage. Depending on how head coach Paul Maurice wants to rotate his goalies, Knight could get 2-3 more starts in November.
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Panthers' Sergei Bobrovsky: Not starting after all
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Bobrovsky won't be in the net against New Jersey on Tuesday with Spencer Knight getting the home start instead, Jameson Olive of the Panthers' official site reports.
Bobrovsky was the first goalie to leave the ice, which normally signals the starter, but head coach Paul Maurice announced it would be Knight instead. The 36-year-old Bobrovsky is riding a five-game winning streak, so the decision to go with Knight was a bit of a surprise, though it will likely allow Bobrovsky to take both games against the nearly unbeatable Jets on Nov. 16 and 19.
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Panthers' Sergei Bobrovsky: First goalie off Tuesday
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Bobrovsky was the first goalie to leave the ice Tuesday, Colby Guy of The Palm Beach Post reports, indicating he'll be between the home pipes versus the Devils.
Considering the Cats last played Saturday versus the Flyers and Bobrovsky is riding a five-game winning streak, it shouldn't come as a surprise to see the veteran backstop manning the crease. During that winning stretch, the 36-year-old Russian is sporting a 2.36 GAA and .917 save percentage. Even without a back-to-back on the schedule until the end of November, Bobrovsky will likely get a rest over the Panthers' next five games, though which game should go to backup Spencer Knight would certainly be open to debate.
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Panthers' Nate Schmidt: Deposits goal Saturday
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Schmidt scored a goal on two shots in Saturday's 4-3 shootout win over the Flyers.
Schmidt has three points and a plus-1 rating over his last five contests. The 33-year-old defenseman has seen time on the third pairing and second power-play unit in that span after opening the campaign in a more limited role when the Panthers were forced to dress seven blueliners. He's up to five points, nine shots on net, 21 hits, eight blocked shots and a minus-1 rating through 14 appearances. If Schmidt can chip in offense somewhat consistently, he could be helpful in deep fantasy formats.
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Panthers' Dmitry Kulikov: Tallies in shootout win
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Kulikov scored a goal on two shots, blocked two shots and went plus-2 in Saturday's 4-3 shootout win over the Flyers.
Kulikov ended a four-game dry spell with his second-period tally. The defenseman is up to four points, 14 shots on net, 24 hits, 14 blocked shots and a plus-8 rating through 15 contests. He's filling a second-pairing role this season, but it comes with no power-play time, so don't expect him to do much more than the 20 points he produced over 76 regular-season outings in 2023-24.
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Panthers' Sam Bennett: Lights lamp Saturday
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Bennett scored a goal on two shots in Saturday's 4-3 shootout win over the Flyers.
Bennett has stayed consistent into November, earning a goal, two assists and nine shots on net over his last four games. The 28-year-old forward continues to center the second line, though his ice time has decreased since the Panthers returned to full health up front last week. Bennett has nine goal, six helpers, 47 shots on net, 32 hits and 16 PIM over 15 appearances.
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Panthers' Evan Rodrigues: Two helpers in Saturday's win
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Rodrigues picked up two assists in Saturday's 4-3 shootout win over the Flyers.
The 31-year-old sparked the Panthers' offense to life in the second period, as he helped set up the team's first two tallies, and Rodrigues then ended the shootout in the fifth round by beating Samuel Ersson on his backhand. Rodrigues has gotten onto the scoresheet in four straight games, a hot streak that comes on the heels of an eight-game point drought, and on the season he's produced four goals and nine points in 15 contests.
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Panthers' Sergei Bobrovsky: Hangs on for shootout win
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Bobrovsky turned aside 34 shots in regulation and overtime and four of five shootout attempts in Saturday's 4-3 win over the Flyers.
All of Florida's scoring in regulation came in the second period, which made for a nervous third for Bobrovsky after a Garnet Hathaway pass attempt midway through the frame deflected off Uvis Balinskis and between the netminder's legs for the tying goal. Bobrovsky didn't get rattled though, and he outdueled Samuel Ersson in the shootout. Bob has won five straight starts and has gone 8-2-1 through 11 outings on the season, but his 2.95 GAA and .895 save percentage are less impressive.
Panthers' Jonah Gadjovich: Returns to lineup Saturday
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Gadjovich (back) will play versus the Flyers on Saturday, according to Colby Guy of The Palm Beach Post.
Gadjovich will return to a bottom-six role following an eight-game absence. He has one goal in six outings this season. With Gadjovic good to go, Mackie Samoskevich will be a healthy scratch versus Philadelphia.
