Marchand will not play for the Panthers right away, with general manager Bill Zito reiterating the Bruins’ timeline of “week to week” after Marchand sustained an upper-body injury in the first period of Boston’s 3-2 win at the Pittsburgh Penguins on March 1.

Florida wasted no time opening the scoring. On the power play, a severe defensive breakdown by the Predators left Sam Reinhart and Bennett alone in front of the Predators’ Juuse Saros (21 saves); Reinhart dropped the puck for Bennett to easily bury 1:23 into the contest.

Now, Samoskevich is not only a regular for the Panthers as they attempt to repeat as Stanley Cup champions, he’s a key cog in what they do in his rookie season. He’s playing top-six minutes on Florida’s second line with center Sam Bennett and, as of Monday, began receiving playing time on the Panthers’ top power-play unit.

Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 16 shots for his second shutout in four games and fourth of the season, and the Florida Panthers won their fifth straight, 3-0 over the Columbus Blue Jackets.

The Panthers will be universally hated now in the respected manner the best teams with swaggering skill set are. When’s the last time South Florida had a winner like that? The Big Three of the