The Florida Panthers will welcome Brad Marchand back into their lineup tonight against the Anaheim Ducks. Gustav Forsling will be a game-time decision, and Sam Reinhart will shift to center ice in Aleksander Barkov's absence.
The Florida Panthers have unfortunately lost Aleksander Barkov for at least 10 games, but they'll welcome back winger Brad Marchand.
The 38-year-old had off-season surgery late in the summer to repair a nagging injury he hoped to rehab. The injury forced him to miss training camp, pre-season and the first two games of the season.
Last year, Marchand scored 27 goals and 54 points in 52 games, ranking second in goals and fourth in points despite missing 30 games.
His usual linemates have been Eetu Luostarinen and Anton Lundell since arriving in Florida in 2025, but with Barkov injured, it will be interesting to see where Marchand is lined up.
Coach Paul Maurice announced that Sam Reinhart will shift to center with Barkov out, which opens the possibility of Marchand skating on the top line with Reinhart and Brady Tkachuk.
If so, Sandis Vilmanis will remain on the third line with Lundell and Luostarinen.
Maurice also mentioned that Gustav Forsling is a game-time decision tonight, currently dealing with an upper-body injury. He was a late scratch against the San Jose Sharks on Friday and was replaced by Uvis Balinskis.
If Forsling is unable to play, the expectation is that Balinskis remains in the lineup in place of Forsling.
Another option is Alex Petrovic, whom the Panthers called up alongside Sam Lafferty from the AHL on Saturday.
The Panthers are set for an 8 p.m. EST puck drop against the Anaheim Ducks.
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