- Brad Marchand makes his season debut Sunday night in Anaheim
- Paul Maurice had him penciled in to rehab through all of October
- Read below for what Maurice said Saturday and the video of his update
Brad Marchand is back way ahead of schedule.
He’ll suit up Sunday night against the Ducks at Honda Center, Paul Maurice told reporters before the game. It’s his first game since March 6, and it comes barely two weeks after Maurice said Marchand would spend the entire month of October rehabbing from offseason surgery.
Jameson Olive of the Panthers’ official site had the update from Anaheim:
It only took two games to get him back. The Panthers opened with a 1-0 overtime win in Carolina, then dropped a 4-3 overtime decision in San Jose on Thursday.
Maurice hinted it was coming after Saturday’s practice. He was asked where Marchand stood and said the 38-year-old was “real close to coming back,” with a few sign-offs still needed.
“The doctors have to sign off on it. The trainers have to sign off, and then [Marchand] has to. I think they’re all close to signing off,” Maurice said. “Then, the coach has to find a way to squeeze him back into the lineup.”
Watch Maurice’s full update from Saturday:
Squeezing him in shouldn’t be hard. Rookie Sandis Vilmanis has been holding down Marchand’s spot on the third line with Anton Lundell and Eetu Luostarinen. Marchand never went on LTIR, so Florida could slot him back in right away.
Florida made it official a few hours before puck drop:
Marchand had surgery in August on a lower-body issue that hounded him through most of last season. He aggravated it in December, tried to manage it from January on and was shut down after his March 6 game against Detroit.
Even playing hurt, he put up 54 points (27 goals, 27 assists) in 52 games.
The Panthers could use the boost. Captain Aleksander Barkov is already on long-term injured reserve after getting hurt in San Jose, and defenseman Gustav Forsling is a game-time decision Sunday. Jacob Markstrom gets the start in goal.
With Barkov out for at least 10 games, Marchand and his 451 career goals are walking back into a lineup that needs them.
