Brad Marchand’s offseason recovery has taken a turn, and now his availability for the start of the Florida Panthers’ season is in doubt.
Marchand revealed in an Instagram video earlier this week that he did, in fact, have surgery after trying to manage his lower-body problem without going under the knife. The post was his explanation for missing former Boston teammate Zdeno Chara’s “Last Shift” charity game next week in Slovakia.
“I won’t be able to make Z’s game,’’ Marchand says in the video post. “Unfortunately, I had to have a surgery, was trying to fix a problem without surgery, but unfortunately that was unable to happen and had to kind of do it last minute.
“With the time and recovery I am going to need, I won’t be able to make it and play in the game unfortunately.”
The injury is believed to involve Marchand’s hip and a sports hernia, and the recovery could keep him out for two months or longer. That timeline puts his status for Panthers training camp, which is expected to begin in about a month, squarely in question.
This latest setback comes after a season in which Marchand battled through the issue for months. He said last season that he aggravated an old injury in December - he had previously undergone hip surgery and sports hernia surgery while with the Bruins - and he entered January with 23 goals and 55 points, both team-leading marks for Florida at the time.
The Panthers then began managing his workload in January so he could stay healthy for the Winter Olympics and suit up for Team Canada. Canada coach Jon Cooper also held him out of some Olympic games.
”The Olympics were a big goal that I had,’’ Marchand said in April. “It really had not hurt that bad at that point. ,’’ said Marchand.
“In January, it got worse, but there was a point where it got better and I thought I was past it. Unfortunately it got really bad there at one point. So, we just had to deal with it here to try and find a solution to get better and be really prepared for next year.’’
Marchand returned to Florida after that stretch and played six more games, producing two goals and four points before Paul Maurice shut him down for the rest of the season. Maurice later told FHN that Marchand simply could not go.
He finished his first full season with the Panthers with 27 goals and 54 points in 52 games, ranking second on the club in goals and fourth in points.
After the season, Marchand said surgery would only happen if rest in the offseason didn’t do the trick. On July 1, general manager Bill Zito said Marchand’s rehab seemed to be on track and that surgery was not expected. But once Marchand ramped up his workouts for the new season, that outlook appears to have changed.
”That’s still a potential,” Marchand said “at the team’s closeout day at the IcePlex. “It’s something that we’re … it’s a last resort.
”There’s so much time here that we’re not in a playoff position to where we’re going to try and do everything we can to get around it without having surgery. But, yeah, it’s not off the table.”
If Marchand isn’t ready when the Panthers open the season, the team could turn to rookie Sandis Vilmanis for a spot on the third line with Anton Lundell and Eetu Luostarinen. If he is ready, that line is where Florida expects to have him.
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