Benching puzzles Petrovic

D-man out to regain coaches’ confidence

“Since then, they’ve been talking to me on and off, but not very direct. At the start, they said I had to be hard to play against and everything. The Carolina game I had seven hits and a couple blocked shots. I don’t know how much harder you can play against someone.”

Boughner said Petrovic will help the Panthers this season and that “he’s a big part of it.” But a return in the coming days seems unlikely, barring a performance dip from the six defensemen in the lineup.

“I just think that the team’s playing pretty well right now defensively and the guys that are playing are playing well,” Boughner said. “No one really deserves to come out. Petro knows that. I’ve been very upfront with him about that.”

The Panthers enter tonight’s game against Toronto as the second-worst defense in the NHL, allowing 3.55 goals per game. Across the past six games — with Petrovic scratched — Florida has allowed 2.17 goals per game.

“They’re playing really good hockey,” Petrovic said. “If the coaching staff thinks they’re supposed to be in, or anyone else is supposed to be playing, that’s fine. That’s their decision.”

At 6-foot-4 and 206 pounds, Petrovic brings a physical presence to the defensive corps. Despite missing about half of the Panthers’ games, he’s third on the team with 33 hits.

When asked if he felt any difference in his game this season, Petrovic said he hasn’t “really had a chance to get going.

“It’s not going to end me or stop me or anything. It’s going to make me stronger. Just take a step back from it and learn different things about yourself and how you react in different situations.”