Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery believes that Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett sucker punched Bruins captain Brad Marchand in Game 3 on Friday night.
“In real-time, my eyes weren’t on there as the puck had left that area,” Montgomery told reporters after his captain missed practice on Saturday. “But having seen it, there’s a history there with Bennett. Hard player, but there’s clearly evidence of what went on. People can say it wasn’t intentional, but we have our view of it.”
Early in the first period of his team’s 6-2 loss on Friday night, Marchand braced for a collision with Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett and got the worst of it. Marchand appeared to take the butt-end of Bennett’s stick to his face as the Panthers forward followed through on the hit. He fell to the ice hard and, thankfully, in front of the Bruins’ bench because he was shaken up and needed help to get to the bench.
Brad Marchand missed a couple of shifts but returned and tried to battle through whatever the injury was that he suffered in the collision with Bennett. After playing 10:51, 15 shifts, and registering four hits but no points, Marchand was done after two periods of play.
Montgomery saying ‘there’s a history there with Bennett’ is likely a reference to this play between Bennett and Toronto Maple Leafs forward Matthew Knies in the second round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Bennett was not penalized for the alleged sucker punch to Marchand and will not receive any supplemental discipline, according to a league source via a text to Boston Hockey Now on Saturday afternoon. Interestingly enough, a former NHL official who asked to remain anonymous had this to say regarding the Bennett-Marchand incident in Game 3:
“I don’t think it’s a sucker punch, but I do think he put his glove up there on purpose, knowing that Brad’s face would run into it. Quite possibly, the shaft of the stick got him as well. I think it’s intentional but tough to really prove.”
With no punishment for Bennett, there’s a chance things could get out of hand in a hurry when the Boston Bruins in Game 4 on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET. It would behoove the Bruins more, though, to worry about creating more offensive pressure and winning.
