Panthers’ Brad Marchand to miss game against Ducks; Jonah Gadjovich out a week

Some roster moves for the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions.

When speaking to the media on Monday, Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice stated that forward Brad Marchand will not be in the lineup when the team hosts the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night. Maurice mentioned that Marchand’s absence is due to a death in his family circle.

Forward Noah Gregor will be jumping into the lineup for the first time this season after getting his work visa situation worked out. Winger Jonah Gadjovich is also expected to miss a week of play due to an upper-body injury.

Marchand has been having a great start so far for the Cats. In his first full season with the team, he has scored five goals and six assists for 11 points in 10 games. He leads the team in scoring and is the only Panther to have reached double digits thus far. The Halifax native was on a three-game point streak, including registering a couple of assists in his return to Boston last Tuesday. Marchand’s emotional night ended with Florida snagging a 4-3 win over the Boston Bruins.

After being a key part of the Panthers’ run to the championship last spring, Marchand elected to stay in South Florida for the foreseeable future, signing a six-year contract extension on June 30.

Gadjovich had also played in the first 10 games of the new season. He’s posted just three assists so far, including a helper in a 3-0 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday. The 26-year-old, who is currently in the middle of the final season of his current contract, signed a two-year extension a couple of weeks ago.

Gregor was originally invited to Florida’s training camp on a professional tryout last month. The journeyman performed well enough to earn a one-year, two-way contract with the team. Gregor registered seven points in 52 games with the Ottawa Senators and San Jose Sharks last season.