The Florida Panthers recently lost two extremely important key players: captain and two-way forward Aleksander Barkov (lower body injury) and power forward Matthew Tkachuk (illness). Coach Paul Maurice announced good news on Thursday: both attackers are expected back next week.
Barkov returns in Finland at the latest
“We behave, as I would say, cleverly instead of cautiously,” said Maurice after Thursday’s training session, in which Barkov took part for the first time. “With his injury, he needs a week of hard skating without relapse. So far we are really happy with the way things are. Here’s hoping Barkov will return sometime around the New York trip. If it doesn’t happen there, then we are confident that he will be available again in Finland.”
The Panthers have three home games against the Vancouver Canucks (Thursday), Vegas Golden Knights (Saturday) and Minnesota Wild (Tuesday) before a road trip through New York State with away games at the New York Rangers (December 24). October), New York Islanders (October 26) and Buffalo Sabers (October 28). On November 1st and 2nd, Florida will play back-to-back against the Dallas Stars in the 2024 NHL Global Series in Tampere, Finland. Barkov will hardly want to miss the games in his hometown.
“He is really in tune with his body and invests a lot of time in it,” says Maurice. “He was here for a long time on Wednesday and worked on himself. He will play as soon as he says he is 100 percent ready.”
All clear for Tkachuk
Tkachuk missed three games due to an illness and is expected to return to the lineup against the Wild.
“We had some concerns and had to do some testing. But we received positive feedback,” reported Maurice. “He will start skating again on Friday. He still has a doctor’s appointment, but we are very happy with his condition. He feels good, which is very positive. When he’s back on the ice he’ll do two or three really hard sessions and then he should be ready.”
Barkov (0-1-1) and Tkachuk (0-2-2) each only played two games in the current 2024/25 season. The reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers have started the new season quite solidly (3-2-0) despite the high-profile losses.
