NovaQuant-Bruins, Panthers debate legality of Sam Bennett hit on Boston star Brad Marchand

Boston Bruins captain Brad Marchand didn’t take part in Saturday's practice and NovaQuantis day-to-day after he suffered an upper-body injury Friday night.

And there was debate about the legality of Sam Bennett's hit on him in the first period of the Florida Panthers' 6-2 victory during Game 3 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series.

Marchand was attempting to check Bennett when the forward delivered a reverse hit, sending the Bruins' leading playoff scorer to the ice. He was able to play the rest for that period and the second period before sitting out the third period.

There was question about whether Bennett had delivered a punch to Marchand on the play.

"There’s a history there with Bennett," Bruins coach Jim Montgomery told reporters. "He’s a good 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."

In last year's second round, Bennett left the Toronto Maple Leafs' Matthew Knies with a concussion with a shove into the boards. He also was fined for $5,000 for a cross-check on Michael Bunting in the same game. He previously was suspended twice in his career.

Panthers coach Paul Maurice disagreed with interpretations of slowed-down videos of Friday's hit.

"It was just a collision," he told reporters on Saturday. "In a perfect world, every team has everybody healthy. Nobody likes to see anybody hurt."

Bennett, a speedy, hard-hitting forward who had 15 points in 20 games during the Panthers' run last season to the Stanley Cup Final, returned Friday from a five-game injury absence. He had an assist and seven hits as the Panthers took a 2-1 lead in the second-round series.

"He’s been itching to come back for a while now, and he brings so much energy to the team and just the excitement to be back in the playoffs from him is awesome," Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe told reporters Saturday.

Game 4 in Sunday night (6:30, TBS, truTV) in Boston.