Brad Marchand and the Florida Panthers can’t catch a break in the 2025-26 NHL season. Now, head coach Paul Maurice has confirmed two more injuries that will sideline key players as the Cats sail in the roughest waters they’ve been in for a very long time.
Aside from Marchand’s red-hot form, there haven’t been many reasons for celebrations for the fans in Sunrise. The ongoing NHL campaign has truly tested the organization’s depth and crisis management. With players going down with injuries like flies, the Panthers have had no time to relax, and that won’t be changing any time soon.
As if the injury bug hasn’t been costly enough for Florida, Maurice has now confirmed Cole Schwindt and Eetu Luostarinen will be out. The former was expected, as he left a game with an injury, but the latter came as a shock when the head coach revealed the unexpected non-hockey incident that caused his setback.
According to The Miami Herald’s Jordan McPherson, Maurice announced Luostarinen is considered week-to-week after sustaining burns during a barbeque incident. As for Schwindt, he will undergo surgery for a broken arm, and is expected to be out for 2-3 months in the NHL season.
Fortune isn’t on Marchand and the Cats’ side
With Luostarinen out for weeks, Marchand is now being directly affected by the latest setback in Sunrise. Luostarinen played a pivotal role alongside Marchand on the Panthers’ first forward line. So far, the trio of Marchand, Luostarinen, and Anton Lundell have combined for 49 points—approximately 30% of all Florida’s points in the season. With him out of the lineup, Mackie Samoskevich is filling the void.
Luostarinen and Schwindt are just new names being added to the long list of Panthers players who have gone down with injuries of any sort in the 2025-26 NHL season. The list is topped by Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk, and followed by the likes of Dmitry Kulikov, Jonah Gadjovich, and Tomas Nosek. Now, Luostarinen and Schwindt will be joining.
Marchand leads the way
In the meantime, Marchand and the Panthers must hold their ground. If it’s any hope, Marchand has been playing some of the best hockey of his career, as he rides an 11-game point streak (16 points during that stretch). The 37-year-old’s best career point streak was a 13-game stretch, which he is now within reach of reaching—and even surpassing. With Marchand at the helm, Maurice and the Cats are confident they can weather any storm the tropical climate in South Florida has in store for them.