Zito Says Marchand Is Coming Back. Just Not Yet.

Bill Zito went on record Tuesday saying Brad Marchand will return early in the 2026-27 season — which is good news, and also the only good news in a sentence that begins with the Panthers opening without their leading scorer.

Marchand put up 47 points in 42 games last year, the best rate on the roster. The surgery he underwent this offseason has kept him out of camp, and the timeline remains vague enough that "early in the season" is doing a lot of work. Zito doesn't sound panicked, and fair enough — a GM who sounds panicked in September has bigger problems. But the roster that takes the ice for the opener is going to look nothing like the one Florida spent the summer assembling.

The broader injury picture hasn't materially changed since I last wrote about it. Reinhart, Bennett, Verhaeghe, and most of the defensive corps are still out. Markstrom's readiness remains the other open question. The front office built a veteran, physical identity this offseason, and right now that identity is mostly on a training table somewhere. Marchand coming back in week three or four helps. It doesn't fix October.