Panthers’ Sam Bennett suffers upper-body injury in Game 2 vs. Lightning

Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett left Game 2 against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the second period after blocking a shot. 

Bennett was hit in the hand by teammate Brandon Montour’s slap shot from the right point as he skated through the slot at 4:47 of the second period. The puck appeared to hit his finger, and he quickly grabbed his hand.

Bennett dropped his stick, skated to the bench and immediately went down the tunnel, throwing his gloves in frustration. 

He did not return for the third period and was ruled out with an upper-body injury.

Bennett opened the scoring for Florida, tallying his first goal of the 2024 playoffs to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead 6:16 into the game. He also added an assist on Vladimir Tarasenko’s goal that made it 2-0.

Bennett played 16:15 in the 3-2 Game 1 win for Florida on Sunday.

The 27-year-old is coming off another solid offensive season, finishing 2023-24 with 41 points (20 goals, 21 assists) and a plus-17 rating. Bennett also added 100 penalty minutes on a feisty Panthers team. 

The 11-year veteran has 42 points (18 goals, 24 assists) in 66 career playoff games. He was a huge piece of the 2022-23 playoff success for Florida. After another 40-point regular season, Bennett racked up 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) in 20 playoff games, as the Panthers made a magical run to the Stanley Cup Final as the lowest seed from the Eastern Conference.  

These two teams last met in the playoffs in 2022, with the Lightning sweeping the Panthers after Florida won the President’s Trophy with the most points in the regular season.

Game 3 is scheduled for Thursday in Tampa Bay.