Brad Marchand questionable for G4; Bruins unhappy with hit

BOSTON – Brad Marchand is dealing with an upper-body injury day after day after a collision with Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett in Game 3 that the Boston Bruins said could have crossed the line.

The Bruins captain’s status for Sunday’s Game 4 is uncertain. He did not practice with the team on Saturday. Marchand is the Bruins’ leading scorer in the playoffs with 10 points in 10 games (3 goals, 7 assists).

The Panthers lead the series 2-1 after a 6-2 victory in Boston on Friday night.

Some on social media said a slow-motion replay showed Bennett making contact with Marchand’s head using his right glove as the Boston winger went for a check. Andrew Raycroft, a former NHL goaltender who covers the Bruins for NESN, called it “a gut punch, not a reverse hit.”

A source told ESPN that the NHL’s Department of Player Safety would not discipline Bennett for the play, who did not receive a penalty from on-ice officials.

Bruins coach Jim Montgomery did not see the incident in real time, but said, “Having seen (the replay), there is a story with Bennett. He’s a good tough player, but there’s clearly evidence of what happened. People can tell. was not intentional. We have our views on this.

Montgomery said the history with Bennett doesn’t come from Marchand specifically, but from the fact that he’s delivered this kind of blow on previous successes.

For example, during the Panthers’ series against the Toronto Maple Leafs last season, Bennett’s right glove made contact with forward Matthew Knies’ face before Bennett slammed Knies to the ice. Knies suffered a concussion during the game, and some said Bennett gave the Toronto rookie a sneaky punch.

Florida coach Paul Maurice said he didn’t believe Bennett hit Marchand.

“No, and I don’t think most of you would have either,” he said Saturday. “It was just a collision. In a perfect world, every team has everyone healthy. Nobody likes to see them get hurt.”

Bennett returned to the Florida lineup for the first time since Game 2 of the first round against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He played 12:43 and contributed to Vladimir Tarasenko’s power-play goal that gave the Panthers a 2-0 lead.

“He hits hard. He’s big and he’s a really tough guy. He knows how to time it,” Panthers wing Carter Verhaeghe said. “It’s a huge skill to know how to time shots like that and to have guys like that. There are very few guys in the league like him that can do that and have the skills that he has .”

Marchand made eight shifts in the first period and seven in the second, totaling 10:51 of ice time before leaving. He did not record a shot on goal and only had one shot attempt.

“You never want to see someone go down and not be able to come back, especially a guy who is your leader and your best player. But this is an opportunity for guys to step up, and we can do that,” Boston center Charlie Coyle said. , who noted that the Maple Leafs rallied against the Bruins in the first round after losing star Auston Matthews to an upper-body injury.

“I think you’ll see guys take on more responsibility and rise to the occasion,” Coyle said. “We want to play for guys that aren’t in the lineup and we wish we could be in the lineup. We play for each other, and that’s something we’re going to do (Sunday).”