![\"Florida](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/8_Panthers_vs_Hurricanes_MJO.jpg\" "\\"Florida")
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Florida Panthers defenseman Seth Jones (3) looks to pass the puck as Carolina Hurricanes left wing William Carrier (28) defends in the first period of their NHL game at Amerant Bank Arena on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla.<\/p>\n
Photo by Matias J. Ocner<\/p>\n
mocner@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n
Florida Panthers coach Paul Maurice provided a slew of injury and lineup updates ahead of the team\u2019s upcoming road trip, which starts Sunday at the Seattle Kraken (8 p.m., Scripps Sports) then continues Tuesday at the Vancouver Canucks (10 p.m., Scripps), Thursday at the Edmonton Oilers (9 p.m., Scirpps) and Friday at the Calgary Flames (9 p.m., Scripps).<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s the full rundown:<\/p>\n
Forward Sam Reinhart<\/p>\n
Panthers forward Sam Reinhart, who scored the team\u2019s game-winning overtime goal against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday, will not travel with the team on the four-game trip.<\/p>\n
The exact reasoning for Reinhart\u2019s absence is undisclosed but he did miss Florida\u2019s 4-3 win over the Detroit Red Wings<\/a> as the Panthers monitor his and other players\u2019 playing time down the stretch of the season.<\/p>\n \u201cEverybody\u2019s dealing with something,\u201d Maurice said, \u201cso we\u2019re trying to get some guys back to feeling good.\u201d<\/p>\n Reinhart leads the Panthers with goals (29), assists (32) and points (61).<\/p>\n Defenseman Seth Jones<\/p>\n Maurice said the Panthers expect defenseman Seth Jones, who has not played since breaking his collarbone blocking a shot during the Winter Classic on Jan. 2, to be available to play on this trip.<\/p>\n Jones had 24 points (six goals, 18 assists) in 40 games prior to the injury while averaging nearly 23-and-a-half minutes of ice time per game.<\/p>\n \u201cHe went through it,\u201d Maurice said. \u201cIt took a long time to heal, and there was nothing he could do. It just had to heal. Hopefully get the green light today before he goes, and then we\u2019ll get him pushed real hard here to see if we can make sure he\u2019s strong.\u201d<\/p>\n Forward Sam Bennett<\/p>\n Forward Sam Bennett will travel but is day-to-day after he \u201cpicked something up\u201d in Florida\u2019s overtime win over Columbus.<\/p>\n Bennett has 50 points (24 goals, 26 assists) this season while averaging a career-high 18-and-a-half minutes of ice time per game. He\u2019s one point shy of his single-season career-high and four goals shy of his career high.<\/p>\n Forwards Carter Verhaeghe and Anton Lundell<\/p>\n Both forwards Carter Verhaeghe and Anton Lundell are expected to be back in the lineup Sunday against Seattle after missing Thursday\u2019s win against Columbus.<\/p>\n Verhaeghe has 19 goals and 46 points in 63 games this season. Lundell has 17 goals and 43 points in 61 games.<\/p>\n Forward Brad Marchand<\/p>\n Maurice said there is still no definitive answer on what comes next for Brad Marchand, who is potentially on the path to season-ending surgery<\/a> for a lingering lower-body injury. He saw doctors this week.<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t have an answer for you on Brad,\u201d Maurice said. \u201cThere\u2019s doctors, a bunch of really smart guys, looking at him to figure out what it is and the best way to proceed.\u201d<\/p>\n Forward Jonah Gadjovich<\/p>\n Fourth-line forward Jonah Gadjovich, who hasn\u2019t played since Oct. 25 and had surgery in early November for an unspecified upper-body injury, could potentially return to the lineup at the end of the road trip.<\/p>\n Defenseman Uvis Balinskis<\/p>\n Defenseman Uvis Balinskis, who is dealing with a lower-body injury sustained after blocking a shot against the Buffalo Sabres on Feb. 27, will be on the trip and could potentially return to the lineup during one of the games.<\/p>\n Maurice said Thursday Balinskis would not return until he was 100%.<\/p>\n Lineup possibilities<\/p>\n The Panthers\u2019 projected lineup for the game against Seattle on Sunday, based on practice Saturday, should be as follows<\/p>\n Forward lines<\/p>\n Eetu Luostarinen-Anton Lundell-Matthew Tkachuk<\/p>\n Carter Verhaeghe-Evan Rodrigues-Mackie Samoskevich<\/p>\n Cole Reinhardt-Tomas Nosek-A.J. Greer<\/p>\n Jesper Boqvist-Luke Kunin-Vinnie Hinostroza<\/p>\n Defense pairs<\/p>\n Gustav Forsling-Aaron Ekblad<\/p>\n Niko Mikkola-Mike Benning<\/p>\n Donovan Sebrango-Dmitry Kulikov<\/p>\n