Aleksander Barkov was helped off the ice Thursday, the Florida Panthers captain favoring his right leg.
“It will get looked at today,” coach Paul Maurice said at Baptist Health IcePlex in Fort Lauderdale. “I will have a better answer for you tomorrow.”
Thursday was the first time Panthers veterans practiced on the ice. Maurice had them working out away from it for the first week of training camp.
It’s the latest injury for the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions, who open their season at home against the Chicago Blackhawks on Oct. 7 (5 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN1, TVAS).
The Panthers are already going to start the season without top forward Matthew Tkachuk (lower body) and fourth-line center Tomas Nosek because of what general manager Bill Zito called a “long-term injury.”
“It’s beyond our control,” Maurice said. “We have to learn to win hockey games without good players. But if that’s the adversity or the test that we face this year, that’s what we’re going to do. I mean, I’m not a doctor. Whatever the report is, it won’t affect what we do the next day.”
Barkov is a three-time winner of the Selke Trophy (2020-21, 2023-24, 2024-25) voted as the League’s top defensive forward. He was selected by the Panthers with the No. 2 pick in the 2013 NHL Draft, had 71 points (20 goals, 51 assists) in 67 games last season and has 782 points (286 goals, 496 assists) in 804 regular-season games.
Over the past two postseasons, Barkov has 44 points (14 goals, 30 assists) in 47 games, one point behind Tkachuk and Carter Verhaeghe for the most among Panthers skaters.
“If he’s out of the lineup on opening night, or if he misses an exhibition game, or if he is out long term, it’s just not going to affect that day,” Maurice said. “We have to win the hockey game. We have to prep for it. That’s all.”
NHL.com independent correspondent George Richards contributed to this report
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