SUNRISE, Fla. – After missing more than a month with an undisclosed injury, forward Jonah Gadjovich will return to the lineup when the Florida Panthers host the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday at Amerant Bank Arena.
Mackie Samoskevich (illness) will sit out for the Panthers.
“Very clean player, but very physical,” head coach Paul Maurice said of Gadjovich, a Stanley Cup champion with Florida in 2024. “A little bit of that physicality will be important to us. It’ll keep us hopefully out of the puck game and more into the physical game.”
Last suiting up during a 2-1 overtime win against the St. Louis Blue on Dec. 20, Gadjovich has been skating for the past several weeks, including joining recent Panthers practices and morning skates.
In the midst of the first season of a two-year contract extension he signed back on March 7, 2024, the 26-year-old has appeared in 18 games this season, logging one goal and 56 hits.
A physical presence on the fourth line, his 23.82 hits per 60 minutes leads the Panthers.
In his return, Gadjovich will line up alongside Tomas Nosek and A.J. Greer.
At 5-on-5, that trio has controlled 53.85% of shot attempts this season.
“That line has been very consistent with a lot of personnel changes,” Maurice said.
