Aleksander Barkov will not return for Florida Panthers this season
· Yahoo Sports
As the Florida Panthers limp toward the end of the season, the inevitable news that likely derailed their chance at a Stanley Cup three-peat became official over the weekend.
Panthers coach Paul Maurice told reporters before the March 29 game at the New York Rangers that captain Aleksander Barkov will not see any action in the regular season, which ends April 15. With Florida unlikely to make the playoffs, Barkov, who underwent surgery to repair a torn ACL and torn MCL in his right knee following a non-contact injury during the first training camp practice on Sept. 25, will have missed the entire 2025-26 NHL season.
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Barkov had been given a 7-to-9-month timeline to return to the ice after the reconstructive surgery - which would have been either right before the playoffs or during the playoffs.
"They give you a two-month window on these knee injuries. He’ll get inside that two-month window, but why would we?" Maurice said of Barkov, who had been cleared to skate in January and has been practicing with his teammates. "We’ll take the whole two months before he plays a hockey game again because we just wouldn’t want to … if it’s six-to-eight [weeks] and we put him in at seven and something happens, that doesn’t make much sense, so we’ll have him go through the entire rehab process.”
Barkov holds franchise records for games played (804), goals (286), assists (496) and points (782).
Only a month ago, general manager Bill Zito was hoping to have Barkov back.
“The sooner, the better, as far as I am concerned,’’ Zito said.
The Panthers currently are 35-35-3 (73 points), having lost seven of their last eight games. While not mathematically eliminated, their chances of making the postseason are extremely remote even if they won their remaining nine games.
So, it makes sense in the long run to shut down Barkov.
Barkov should be 100 percent when training camp opens in September.
“It has been tough,’’ Barkov said in February. “But when something tough or bad happens, you try and find the positives. I don’t know. Maybe taking a long time off here will help me in the future to come back fresher, with a fresh mind, a fresh body.
“Hopefully my career will last longer. I don’t know. But these are the kind of things you think about when you go through tough moments, face adversity.’’
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Aleksander Barkov will not play for Florida Panthers this season