Florida Panthers fans will be excited to hear that Sam Bennett is making a quicker comeback than anticipated.
Bennett is scheduled to play tonight when Florida faces off against the New York Rangers. Initially, it was predicted that he would be out for the remainder of the regular season due to an upper-body injury sustained on April 5th.
Panthers head coach Paul Maurice informed reporters at the morning practice that Bennett is now “100 percent” healthy. Maurice explained that they had some extra time which allowed Bennett to fully recover. Although there was a possibility he might have needed a couple more days to reach full fitness, he is now ready and eager to play. According to Maurice, Bennett feels that playing is more beneficial for him than sitting out, and he would not be playing if there were any lingering doubts about his condition.
This season, the 28-year-old center has achieved a personal best with 25 goals and 25 assists in 74 games played for the Panthers.
As they head into tonight`s game, Florida is currently in third place in the Atlantic Division. Another loss would mean they will not have home-ice advantage in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Panthers are currently two points behind the Tampa Bay Lightning, who they are set to play in their final regular-season game on Tuesday.