Florida Panthers forward Brad Marchand will miss six weeks due to a lower-leg injury, coach Paul Maurice said Friday.
“Three weeks he will be back on the ice, another three to rehab,” Maurice told reporters after practice.
Marchand, 38, took a stick to the face late in the Panthers’ 2-1 win over the host Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday. The hit caused him to twist and hit a goalpost with his right skate, which caused both legs to bend awkwardly.
He grabbed his left knee as he lay face-down on the ice. Unable to put weight on the leg, he needed help from teammates to get off the ice and further assistance to get to the dressing room.
Marchand missed the first two games of the season as he recovered from reported hip and sports hernia injuries. He has played in Florida’s two games since, tallying one goal.
The longtime Boston Bruin is a two-time Stanley Cup winner and has amassed 1,035 points (452 goals, 583 assists) over 1,154 NHL regular-season games since his debut in October 2009.
The Panthers lost Marchand five days after forward Aleksander Barkov went down with a left leg injury that is expected to keep him out for six to eight weeks.
“When they go down and you see that, you’re worried,” Maurice said. “We went through that last year.”
Marchand missed 30 games last season, including the final 19 after a win over the Detroit Red Wings on March 6 because of a lower-body injury.
Barkov sustained his injury during the second period of Florida’s 4-3 overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks on Oct. 1. It was his second game back after missing the entire 2025-26 season due to torn ligaments in his right knee.
