FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Sam Bennett likely will not play for the Florida Panthers for the remainder of the regular season, coach Paul Maurice said Tuesday.
"I just don't think he's going back in," Maurice said of Bennett, who has been dealing with an upper-body injury. "We're going to take the time for the rest of the season."
Bennett did not play in a 2-1 loss at the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday but was on the ice for Florida's morning skate on Tuesday prior to a 3-1 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Maurice said he has no concern that the forward would be ready for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
"No," Maurice said. "None, zero."
When asked whether Bennett was injured during Florida's recent road trip or had been playing through something, Maurice said it was "both."
"It was over the course of the road trip, and we can manage it,'' Maurice said. "But he can't play his game at his best. He can play, but we have to get him as close to 100 percent and we think we might be able to do that. But we have to do that off the ice."
Florida held out six regular skaters on Sunday. Captain Aleksander Barkov, who had missed the previous three games, returned against the Maple Leafs on Tuesday, as did forward Sam Reinhart and defenseman Gustav Forsling.
Maurice also said center Nico Sturm, who has missed four games because of an upper-body injury, and defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, who has missed 10 games because of an upper-body injury, each should return this week.
The Panthers (45-29-4) play their next three games at home before finishing the regular season at the Tampa Bay Lightning on April 15. They are third in the Atlantic Division, two points behind the Lightning and four behind the Maple Leafs.
"We're nine games in 15 days this month, with three sets of back-to-backs,'' Maurice said. "And that's coming off 10 of 14 on the road. I have Sam Reinhart playing 86 games (including the 4 Nations Face-Off) and he has played more games than anyone in the NHL over the past two seasons."
