With Noel Acciari out, Florida Panthers lose their ‘Swiss Army Knife’

The Florida Panthers will be without versatile center Noel Acciari for at least the next four games coach Joel Quenneville said on Monday.

Acciari is not on this four-game trip due to what Quenneville said was an upper body injury.

For the Panthers, not only do they lose the glue of their fourth line, but a relied upon penalty killer and do-it-all player.

“You lose your Swiss Army Knife as far as utility, I use him in all situations,” Quenneville said after Monday’s morning skate at Amalie Arena in Tampa.

“We lose a right (handed) guy in that side of a draw area. We rely on him a lot, so you lose that option. But it creates an opportunity to see some new guys in those positions.”

When and where Acciari was hurt is unknown.

On Saturday night, he played 18 shifts against the Lightning including six in the third period. Acciari was on the ice for the final shift of the game.

So, this could be a lingering issue that Acciari and the Panthers feel needs to be addressed.

With Acciari out, the Panthers will put Juho Lammikko back on the fourth line after he was scratched Saturday when Anthony Duclair returned to the lineup.

Lammikko is also a strong defensive player and will likely take Acciari’s place not only on faceoffs but on the top penalty kill unit.

Last year, the Panthers signed Acciari to a three-year contract in the thoughts he would solidify their fourth line.

He ended up being used in numerous situations and, upon being moved up to the second line with Vincent Trocheck and Jonathan Huberdeau in December, went on a career-best offensive tear.

Not only did Acciari record his first NHL hat trick against Ottawa on Dec. 16 once moved up to Trocheck’s line, but followed that up with another three-goal game in Florida’s next outing against Dallas.

Acciari, whose career-high in goals was 10 in 2017-18, scored 20 for the Panthers last season.

This year, Acciari has has yet to record a point in Florida’s 12 games.

Quenneville added that injured defenseman Gustav Forsling, who has been practicing the past week, could get back into the lineup sometime this week although he would not play against the Lightning.

Florida visits Carolina on Wednesday with back-to-back games in Detroit starting Friday.