Florida Panthers star Sam Bennett made waves on social media on Wednesday for a huge hit he delivered to Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin in Game 4. Thankfully, Slavin is okay, and the hit was considered clean.
In the moment, however, it was a bit scary. Bennett's hit clearly shook Slavin, who did not return to Game 4 after taking the hit. As the Panthers prepare for the Stanley Cup Finals, Bennett took time to reflect on the incident.
“Obviously it's unfortunate he was injured there. I hope he's doing well,” Bennett told NHL insider Darren Dreger on The Ray & Dregs Hockey Podcast. “It was just one of those plays where the timing lined up perfectly for me and I was able to just go right through.”
The Panthers won Game 4, and as a result, booked their first trip to the Stanley Cup Finals since 1996. Bennett did not find his way onto the score sheet in the deciding game. However, he didn't need to thanks to another clutch two-goal performance from Matthew Tkachuk.
The Hurricanes' loss marked their 12th consecutive loss in Conference Finals games. During Carolina's exit interviews on Friday, Slavin thanked those who checked in on him in the aftermath of the hit on Wednesday.
“All the prayers and texts I've been receiving have been super encouraging. I'm really thankful for the Raleigh community,” Slavin said, via Hurricanes reporter Walt Ruff.
While things looked scary on the ice, it is nice to see Slavin is doing well. Bennett clearly did not mean to injure the Hurricanes defenseman. Thankfully, nothing serious came out of this incident.