The Florida Panthers got some good news this morning. Center Sam Bennett has returned to practice for the first time this regular season, per Florida Hockey Now’s George Richards. Bennett sustained a lower-body injury during the preseason that’s kept him out through six games thus far.
If he can get back into playing shape within the next 48 hours, he could make his season debut Saturday against the Kraken. That would likely coincide with a return to the lineup for captain Aleksander Barkov, says Richards, who missed the Panthers’ Tuesday contest against the Sharks with an illness. Bennett, 27, is in the third season of a four-year, $17.7MM extension signed with the Panthers in 2021. Last season was arguably the best of his career, logging a career-high 17:24 while producing 16 goals, 24 assists and 40 points in 63 games. The 2014 fourth-overall pick also finished fourth on the Panthers in playoff scoring, notching five goals and ten assists for 15 points in 20 games.