Sam Bennett defends his controversial hit on Brad Marchand

BOSTON -- Sam Bennett has only played in two games in the Panthers-Bruins playoff series, but he's quickly become the No. 1 villain in Boston. After helping lead the Panthers to a fairly controversial win on Sunday night's Game 4, he made himself even less endearing to Bruins fans after the game.

Bennett was at center of controversy Friday night when he delivered a heavy hit on Brad Marchand early in the first period. The hit left Marchand dazed, though the B's captain remained in the game through the second period before he was ruled out for the third. Marchand did not play in Sunday's Game 4 due to what the team is classifying as an upper body injury.

Many suspect that Marchand is dealing with a concussion, and it's easy to see why when watching replays of the hit. A new angle that TNT showed during Sunday's game appears to show that the Florida forward threw a punch at Marchand's head while he made contact, which sent Marchand to the ice and back to the Boston bench. 

It was a dangerous hit and Bennett has drawn the ire of both Boston fans and the Bruins, though he received no punishment from the NHL over the weekend. And after he had a controversial cross-check on Charlie Coyle that led to his game-tying goal in Game 4 -- which the Panthers won, 3-2, to take a 3-1 series lead -- Bennett defended his hit on Marchand in Game 3.

"On that play, obviously I'm not trying to punch him in the head like everyone's saying," Bennett said in a postgame interview on TNT. "Other people can have different opinions. I'm just bracing myself for him coming to hit me. 

"There's no way I would have had time to think about punching him in the head," Bennett added. "People can see it however they want. It's playoff hockey. There's going to be hard plays. Obviously, it's unfortunate he got hit, but that's just a hockey play in my mind."

Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery had a different opinion Friday night, and again Sunday morning shortly after he announced that Marchand would miss Game 4. He wouldn't go as far as calling it a dirty hit, but he certainly wasn't pleased with it.

"I don't think I classified it as dirty. I just thought it was outside the lines," said Montgomery. "I think it was someone that plays the game on the edge and he knew what he was doing. I don't know if you've seen the picture from behind, but there's clearly -- he loaded up."

Again, Bennett received no punishment from the league for the hit, and then went out and helped the Panthers take a 3-1 series lead while Marchand had to sit out. The Bruins will now look to keep the series going Tuesday night in Sunrise, Florida with a win in Game 5.