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.