Florida Panthers
Bizarro World: Bennett, Marchand Team Up to Slow Tkachuk
Anyone who watched last year’s second-round playoff series between the Panthers and Bruins should find it hard to imagine Brad Marchand and Sam Bennett being anything but passing acquaintances with Team Canada at the 4 Nations tournament.
The two certainly had a moment — one they seem to be past.
With Canada playing the United States in what should be a rockem, sockem showdown in Montreal tonight, coach Jon Cooper is putting Bennett and Marchand together on the fourth line.
Yeah, international play certainly creates strange bedfellows: The coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning putting two powder kegs from the Panthers and Bruins — not to mention Seth Jarvis of the Hurricanes — on the same line is downright delicious.
Is this the Matthew Tkachuk effect?
Cooper threw that idea out there before it could be asked.
“It will be interesting if Sam and Matthew meet in a corner at some point,” Cooper said with a grin.
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Tkachuk, of course, is Bennett’s longtime teammate dating to their days with the Calgary Flames.
He has also been Bennett’s righthand wing pretty much since his first day with the Panthers.
With the way Tkachuk is playing these days — he has scored in seven straight games, if you count the two he put in against Finland on Thursday — someone has to stop him and a top line which includes his brother Brady and center Jack Eichel.
A lethal trio like that needs serious attention.
So, Bennett and Marchand are now going to play with Carolina’s Seth Jarvis to try and give it a shot.
Funny to think about when you go back to Game 3 of last year’s playoffs.
Bennett had just come back from hand surgery, and was skating off the ice when Marchand appeared to size him up.
Instead, Bennett saw the open-ice hit coming, turned into it, and sent Marchand sprawling into the boards.
The Bruins say Bennett suckered Marchand in the process, putting him out with a concussion.
Then-Boston coach Jim Montgomery said it was a dirty play by Bennett — and a reverse angle showed Bennett make contact to Marchand’s head.
Bennett has maintained there was no way, not with his still-healing hand, that he could have done anything but turn into the hit. Anything else was incidental.
“I just thought it was outside the lines,’’ Montgomery said before Game 4, one in which Marchand could not play in. “I think it’s someone that plays the game on the edge. And he knew what he was doing. I don’t know if you’ve seen the picture from behind. But there’s clearly… he loaded up.”
Bennett said he and Marchand have been getting along famously.
Truth?
“That’s hockey,” Bennett said. “You are going to have rivals when you have intense playoff games. He’s been nothing but great to me since I’ve been here. He’s a super guy, and I’m excited to play with him.
“It will be nice to have him on my side tomorrow.”
Said Marchand: “He plays very hard, great asset to the team. He’s a competitor. Seen it first-hand.’’
Bennett was a healthy scratch for the opening win against Sweden, but Cooper said that the Florida center told him he was cool with not playing if it was for the best of the team.
Cooper loves that kind of team-first attitude.
But Bennett is fired up and ready to go.
“Happy to get to prove my worth,’’ he said. “Can’t wait to get in the lineup and help this team in any way that I can.”
4 NATIONS FACE-OFF SCHEDULE
At Bell Centre, Montreal
- Wednesday: Canada 4, Sweden 3 (OT)
- Thursday: United States 6, Finland 1
- Today: Finland vs. Sweden, 1 p.m. (ABC, ESPN+); United States vs. Canada, 8 p.m. (ABC, ESPN+)
At TD Garden, Boston
- Monday: Canada vs. Finland, 1 p.m. (TNT/truTV, Max); Sweden vs. United States, 8 p.m. (TNT/truTV, Max)
- Thursday: Championship game, 8 p.m. (ESPN, ESPN+)
Standings
- 1. United States 3 points
- 2. Canada 2
- 3. Sweden 1
- 4. Finland 0
