The injury bug keeps biting the Florida Panthers, and this time it landed on Brad Marchand.
Marchand had to be helped off the ice after suffering an apparent lower-body injury late in Tuesday’s game against the Los Angeles Kings. The play came after he drove to the net and went down awkwardly, with his left leg buckling underneath him. He was unable to put pressure on the leg as he left the ice.
The veteran forward logged 9:36 of ice time before exiting, finishing with two shots and one hit.
It was only Marchand’s second game of the season. The 38-year-old had just returned to the Florida lineup after offseason surgery for an unspecified injury. In Sunday’s 3-2 overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks, he picked up an assist and fired three shots on goal.
Marchand’s setback added to an already rough day for the Panthers. Earlier Tuesday, head coach Paul Maurice said captain Aleksander Barkov is expected to miss six-to-eight weeks with a lower-body injury. Barkov was hurt last week against the San Jose Sharks in just his second game back after missing the entire 2025-26 season because of an ACL injury.
Marchand’s first season in Florida was productive. He put up 27 goals and 27 assists for 54 points in 52 games last year.
Across his career, which began in 2009, Marchand has piled up 451 goals, 583 assists and 1,153 penalty minutes for 1,034 points between the Panthers and Boston Bruins. The Halifax native has hit the 80-point mark five times in 17 seasons, including a career-best 100-point year in 2018-19 with Boston, when he scored 36 goals and added 64 assists.
In Other News...
Panthers Suddenly Have Much Less Reason To Chase Dylan Larkin
Aleksander Barkovs lower-body injury changes the calculus in Florida, even if it does not appear to change the long-term outlook. The Panthers captain is expected to miss six to eight weeks, but he will not need surgery, which at least keeps the door open for a cleaner return later in the season. In the short term, though, it leaves the Panthers without their top center and naturally invites a little roster-watching from the outside.
That is where the Dylan Larkin chatter had started to build, with the Detroit center back in the lineup after an injury and a trade request, then taking his share of boos before helping the Red Wings win. For Florida, the Barkov timeline makes a major center pursuit look far less pressing, and maybe far less realistic. The speculation had some traction because of the Panthers need, but with Barkov set to come back in a matter of weeks rather than months, the urgency around chasing a headline-grabbing fix has taken a noticeable hit. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Suddenly Have A Pavel Zacha Question They Cant Ignore
The Bruins attention may be on Pavel Zachas uncertain contract situation and the trade talk swirling around him, but the ripple effects reach well beyond Boston. Around the league, the market is still moving in the same cautious way, with Patrik Laine remaining unsigned as a free agent and David Perron also searching for a new home, while teams continue to weigh cap space, roster fit and timing. For the Florida Panthers, that broader churn matters because every move around a rival can shift the outlook in the Atlantic and alter how quickly teams try to solve their own lineup questions.
Florida already has enough on its plate with Aleksander Barkov expected to miss 6-8 weeks, and now it is also waiting for more clarity on Brad Marchands lower-body injury. The Panthers have not given a diagnosis or a timeline, leaving one of their most important late-season additions in limbo at a time when their margin for error is already thin. Between the uncertainty in Boston and the questions in Sunrise, the divisions picture is changing by the day, and the next update could carry real weight for the Panthers. [Read more 🡒]
Panthers Waiver Move Leaves One Entwistle Concern Unanswered
MacKenzie Entwistles status remains part roster move, part health watch for Florida. The Panthers have placed the forward on waivers with the plan of sending him to Charlotte in the AHL, a procedural step that fits a two-way contract and gives the club some flexibility while it sorts out its depth chart.
The bigger question is still the one surrounding Entwistle himself, because he has been working through an undisclosed injury and never got onto the ice for training camp or the preseason. Even with the waiver move now in place, Florida has not offered much public clarity on when he might be ready to help, leaving his immediate role and return timeline a little murky. [Read more 🡒]