The veteran forward has a new recovery timeline, skating in San Jose and signaling a potential late-month return to bolster Florida’s elite offensive depth ahead of schedule.
A piece of good news came out of the Florida Panthers practice on Wednesday in San Jose.
One day after picking up a victory in their first game of the season, the Panthers were back on the ice for practice at Sharks Ice, the San Jose Sharks training facility, ahead of their game on Thursday.
On the ice for a portion of Florida’s time at Sharks Ice was forward Brad Marchand.
Marchand has been out since having a procedure last month, one that was expected to keep him out until sometime in November.
At least that was the initial diagnosis, which Panthers head coach Paul Maurice and general manager Bill Zito shared with the media several weeks ago.
In the time since, Marchand has been spotted on the ice several times.
Mostly he’s been working with coaches and forward Jonah Gadjovich, who is also on Injured Reserve and out indefinitely.
Marchand is on the road trip with his Panthers teammates, though, and after skating on Wednesday, his head coach provided an update on how the veteran forward is recovering from the injury.
“He’s probably further ahead than we thought,” Maurice said. “The window is still there, but he survived a Patric Hornqvist skate the other day and not too many healthy people can do that, so I don’t know where he’s at, but I think he’s closer to the end of the month.”
Video of Marchand at Wednesday's practice can be seen below:
Adding Marchand to Florida’s lineup will only boost what some consider the deepest forward group in the NHL.
Last season, Marchand’s first full campaign with the Panthers, he led the team offensively in goals and points until injuries began catching up to him in February and March. He finished with 27 goals and 54 points in 52 games.
When he returns, it’s expected that Marchand re-joins a forward line with Anton Lundell and Eetu Luostarinen, but that’s assuming there are no other changes to the lineup between now and then.
We’ll see how things play out, but Florida’s embarrassment of riches that is their depth will only grow stronger when Marchand gets back in the band.
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