Barkov out 6-8 weeks for Panthers with lower-body injury
Captain injured in second game after missing all of last season, won't need surgery
By NHL.com
Aleksander Barkov will be out 6-8 weeks for the Florida Panthers because of a lower-body injury.
The 31-year-old captain was injured in a 4-3 loss to the San Jose Sharks on Oct. 1.
The Panthers announced Saturday that Barkov was placed on long-term injured reserve and would see a doctor Monday.
Speaking before his team defeated the Los Angeles Kings 2-1 at Crypto.com on Tuesday, Florida coach Paul Maurice announced the timeline and added that Barkov does not need surgery.
"He's scheduled to be out 6-8 weeks, non-surgical rehab, and that's our best window," Maurice said. "Could be a little less, could be a little more, but we think 6-8 is the right rehab time."
Barkov went down awkwardly while battling for the puck in the right corner during a power play at 8:07 of the second period. After getting up, he immediately asked for the Zamboni doors to be opened and threw his gloves down while walking to the locker room.
He was playing just his second game this season after missing all of 2025-26 because of a right knee injury he sustained on the first day of training camp. He had surgery the day after the injury to repair his MCL and ACL.
"It was harder to handle last year," Maurice said. "You’re just hoping you could stick around and make the playoffs. He might be able to come back, but he didn’t really return until mid-May at the World Championships. So, it’s good. It’s good for everything, maybe most importantly for 'Barky.'
"He's our captain, and we miss him. And he feels it when he’s not around, so he’s probably the happiest of all of us."
Although Barkov was unavailable for Florida last season, he did play for Finland at the 2026 IIHF World Championship in Switzerland in May. He served as captain and had 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in 10 games helping his country win the gold medal.
Barkov played 20:32 in the Panthers' season opener, a 1-0 overtime win at the Carolina Hurricanes on Sept. 29.
Selected by Florida with the No. 2 pick in the 2013 NHL Draft, Barkov has 782 points (286 goals, 496 assists) in 806 regular-season games. He also has 81 points (25 goals, 56 assists) in 94 Stanley Cup Playoff games, captaining the Panthers to back-to-back championships in 2024 and 2025.
He is a three-time winner of the Selke Trophy voted as the best defensive forward in the NHL (2020-21, 2023-24, 2024-25) and won the Lady Byng Trophy for sportsmanship and gentlemanly play in 2018-19.
Lars Eller moved up to play center on the top line with Brady Tkachuk and Sam Reinhart in Barkov's absence Sunday and had an assist in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks. He also had an assist against the Kings.
"No one's going to be able replace Sasha Barkov, and I'm not trying to," Eller said Saturday. "I'm just trying to play to my own identity and complement my linemates and I'm playing with really good players no matter what, and I welcome that opportunity."
Florida did get forward Brad Marchand back Sunday after he had offseason surgery for a lower-body injury. However, he was helped off the ice in the game on Tuesday.
In addition to Barkov and Marchand last season, Panthers forwards Matthew Tkachuk, Anton Lundell, Reinhart and Jonah Gadjovich, and defensemen Seth Jones, Eetu Luostarinen and Dmitry Kulikov also missed significant time because of injuries.
Florida recalled forward Sam Lafferty and defenseman Alexander Petrovic from Charlotte of the American Hockey League on Saturday, but neither have played since.
"It feels completely different than last year at this time," Maurice said Saturday. "There's really good depth here now, so we've got NHL veteran players that can come in and help look forward."
NHL.com independent correspondents Dan Greenspan and Dan Arritt contributed to this report
