Bruins’ Marchand leaves Game 3 against Panthers with upper-body injury

The leader of the Boston Bruins had a premature exit on Friday night.

In the first period of Game 3 of the Atlantic Division Final between the Bruins and Florida Panthers, Boston captain Brad Marchand took an awkward hit from the Panthers’ Sam Bennett, sending Marchand careening in the boards between the benches.

Marchand was in considerable pain on the bench, but battled through to play the remainder of periods one and two. However, the Bruins announced that Marchand was unlikely to return to the game in the third due to an upper-body injury.

Marchand played 10:51 in two periods, registering five hits, but no shots on goal.

It goes without saying how important Marchand is to the Bruins’ success, especially in the postseason. The 35-year-old has three goals and 10 points in Boston’s 10 playoff games. He scored eight points in the team’s opening-round series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, doing so in the first four games against the Leafs. Marchand registered two goals and an assist in the Bruins’ 4-2 win in Game 3 last month.

The Halifax, Nova Scotia native scored 29 goals and 67 points in 82 games during the regular season, the ninth straight season Marchand has hit the 60-point mark. It was also the first time since the 2013-14 season that he played the entire regular season. Marchand had been banged up in stretches over the last two campaigns.

In 1,029 games, Marchand has scored 401 goals and 929 points, including scoring 56 goals and 138 points in 156 career playoff appearances.

Game 4 between the Bruins and Panthers is set for Sunday evening in Boston.