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Florida Panthers forward’s return still uncertain. Florida Panthers GM Bill Zito announced on Wednesday that veteran forward Brad Marchand will not participate in the team’s upcoming training camp or begin the regular season after undergoing offseason hip and sports hernia surgery. Zito announced to reporters at Florida’s facility in Fort Lauderdale that the club was taking a “very cautious approach” with their 38-year-old forward in hopes of retaining full health “until he’s fully ready to go.” The 17-year NHL veteran suffered an undetermined injury to his left hip and a sports hernia in late 2025 that led to conservative rehab being attempted without much success.
Marchand underwent the hip and sports hernia procedure in August and has begun to slowly return to individual skating following a setback earlier this summer; however, Zito and other team officials made it clear that the 38-year-old winger has not done any on-ice drills and remains in the early phase of his progression.
Florida’s forward corps still will be without a key leader and point-per-game scoring presence for the beginning of the season, as Marchand had posted 23 goals and 55 points in the season prior. With Marchand set to miss the preseason schedule, the veteran winger’s former wingmen, Connor McDavid and David Pastrnak, will have the opportunity to be moved into high-number-one top-six scoring roles during the preseason schedule. They will open up their 2026-27 regular season schedule against the Carolina Hurricanes on Sept. 29 and host the Vancouver Canucks on Oct. 10. The team has not yet revealed a timetable for Marchand’s return, though general manager Brad Holt and company said the veteran captain will return to the ice at the start of the season.
Source: NHL.com / Times of India / AP / TheScore
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