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Florida Panthers star, Sam Reinhart, is unlikely to feature in Game 3 of the NHL Eastern Conference Playoff Final with a lower body injury.
How Did Sam Reinhart Get His Injury?
Sam Reinhart was forced off in the Florida Panthers Game 2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes and is believed to have suffered an injury to his lower body.
During an offensive power play, the Canadian was hit with a major blow from the Carolina Hurricanes forward, Sebastian Aho, which occurred at around 14:50 of the opening period.
The 29-year-old was clearly in a huge amount of pain as he limped towards the bench and looked to be holding the left side of his hip or upper area of the leg.
In typical Reinhart style, he attempted to continue playing but after a break between the first and second period the Panthers star did not come back to the rink.
Overall, Reinhart was on the ice for just over five minutes which was split into eight different moments during the opening period against the Hurricanes.
This injury has come at an unfortunate time, with Reinhart putting in some strong performances in the Stanley Cup playoff Playoff matches – reaching 11 points in 14 matches (4G+7A).
Achieving a points tally like this is no mean feat, although Reinhart is still a fair distance away from the record amount of points in a playoff, as the best NHL playoff player of all-time, Wayne Gretzky, reached 47 in 18 matches for the Edmonton Oilers in 1985.
Picking up an injury in any NHL Playoff encounter is never a good sign as the games come thick and fast, meaning Reinhart is now a doubt for Game 3 on Saturday, May 24th.
Florida Panthers head coach, Paul Maurice, gave a vague update on the 29-year-old’s current status and stated that the NHL side need to run through some checks before Game 3.
Maurice said: “We’ll get him looked at. So, Saturday I’ll have something (an update) for you.”
Reinhart missed seven matches for the Carolina Panthers during the regular season and still managed to accumulate the most points for the franchise with 81.
His performances have proved crucial for the Panthers this season and being in the top 50 highest paid players in the NHL indicates how his absence could be a major miss for the Florida franchise.
Who Will Win Eastern Conference Playoff Final?
The Florida Panthers have stormed to a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference Playoff Final against the Carolina Hurricanes, winning the opening match 5-2 and clinching a dominant shut-out 5-0 victory in the second encounter.
Both of these victories have come away from home, with the Panthers going to the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, NC and asserting themselves on the series in style.
Making this dream start will give the Panthers a huge amount of confidence and puts them in a good position to retain the Stanley Cup trophy for the first time in history.
It would also mean that the Panthers have won their second Stanley Cup, winning their first ever title last year since being founded in 1993 and establishing themselves as one of the best NHL teams right now.
As for the Carolina Hurricanes, they are looking to win their first Stanley Cup since 2006 and reach a milestone of two titles as the 2006 triumph is their only Stanley Cup title.
During their 2006 success, the Hurricanes overturned a 2-0 deficit against the Montreal Canadiens in the Eastern Conference quarter finals to win 4-2 – something they will need to repeat this year.
