Practice notebook: Bennett 'not day-to-day,' Ekman-Larsson likely to play Thursday in Detroit
Evan Rodrigues also did not practice Wednesday but could still play against the Red Wings
The Florida Panthers were back on the ice Wednesday afternoon for a team practice in Detroit.
They took a day off on Tuesday to regroup following Monday’s 3-2 overtime loss in Boston.
It was a particularly tough defeat due to Florida losing both Sam Bennett and Oliver Ekman-Larsson to injuries.
Ekman-Larsson was back on the ice with his teammates for Wednesday’s skate in Motown, but Bennett was not.
Also missing from the skate was top line winger Evan Rodrigues.
Without the two forwards, Florida’s lines had a different look.
After the skate, Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice indicated the injury to Bennett would keep him off the ice in the immediately future, but that wasn’t anything long term.
Maurice said it may not be as bad as the lower-body injury Bennett suffered late in the preseason that kept him off the ice for a couple weeks.
“He’s not day-to-day, he’s going to be a little longer,” Maurice said. “We don’t’ think it’s as significant as the first one. We’ll have to see how he feels. What happens in the first three days will tell us how long it’s going to be.”
Regarding Rodrigues, the hope is that he’ll be able to play on Thursday night against the Red Wings.
“He’s just got a minor issue,” Maurice said. “We just wanted to keep him off and see if we could get ahead of it.”
Maurice said that Ekman-Larsson “should be good to go” for Thursday.
Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy was suspended four games by the NHL Department of Player Safety for his illegal check to Ekman-Larsson’s head during Monday’s game against Florida.
Ekman-Larsson left the game after the hit and did not return, but his presence on the ice Wednesday indicated he cleared any potential hurdles needed for him to get back out there safely.
"We've all seen guys take light hits sometimes and be out for extended periods of time," Maurice said. "You see that and you think it's just so dangerous, right? There's not much you can do in terms of rehab, so it's great that he got through the protocol and felt better today."
The Panthers face Detroit on Thursday night at Little Caesars Arena, with the puck dropping at the big pizza slice at 7 p.m.
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