Paul Maurice confirms 3 players are out for Game 4.

The Florida Panthers will have the chance to sweep the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final on Monday night but it will be an uphill battle for the cats.

On Monday morning, Panthers head coach Paul Maurice officially confirmed that his team would be short 3 players for Game 4, all of which are due to injury. Maurice confirmed that forward Sam Reinhart, forward AJ Greer and defenseman Niko Mikkola have all been sidelined due to injury and will be unavailable for the Panthers in Game 4.

The loss of Reinhart comes as no surprise to anyone who saw him take a hit from Hurricanes forward Sebastian Aho, with Reinhart's leg appearing to bend horribly after being hit low by Aho.

The news regarding Greer and Mikkola does come as somewhat more of a surprise however given that there appeared to be positive signs for both men following their respective injuries in Game 3. Greer was on the ice this morning and did skate, but he must have felt that something wasn't right if Maurice is confidently declaring him out ahead of Game 4.

Maurice himself had previously indicated that he expected both Greer and Mikkola to be available for Game 4 but it seems that the Panthers head coach was overly optimistic in that regard. Mikkola has been a force for the Panthers in these playoffs, playing a heavy physical game and making it difficult for opponents to find space on the ice without being punished, and there's no telling how the Panthers will respond tonight with so many holes in their lineup to fill.