Two days removed from his NHL debut, Victor Oreskovich still was as elated to be with the Panthers on Monday as he was when he walked into the visitors' locker room at Scottrade Center in St. Louis on Saturday to meet his new teammates.

That enthusiasm was further stoked when Oreskovich learned he would play significant minutes his first time out.

``I just came in for the pregame snack and saw my name on the board, penciled in the third line,'' Oreskovich said Monday.

The right wing retired from professional hockey in 2007 rather than try out for the Colorado Avalanche, but Panthers coach Pete DeBoer -- who coached Oreskovich during DeBoer's stint as coach for Canada's junior team -- said he has enough faith in the 23-year-old to give him early ice time.

``He's a big, fast guy. He finishes his hits and gets in on the forecheck, and we don't have a lot of that in the lineup,'' DeBoer said. ``He knows what to expect because he's played for me, so he has an advantage there.''

Oreskovich played nearly 14 minutes and recorded five checks against the Blues on Saturday.

He said his father and uncle will travel to Sunrise for his home debut against Carolina on Wednesday night.

DVORAK SKATES

During Monday's practice, Radek Dvorak skated for the first time since tearing a ligament in his left knee against the Philadelphia Flyers on Oct. 24.

Although he said there is no timetable for his return, DeBoer said Dvorak is recovering well and will not require surgery.

`MAINTENANCE DAY'

Not on the ice for Monday's morning skate: David Booth, Dominic Moore and Bryan Allen. DeBoer said Moore still is feeling the effects of nasal surgery performed last Thursday, and that Allen -- who played three games in four nights -- needed rest.

``No red flags, but just a maintenance day,'' DeBoer said.

Booth continues to recover from a concussion -- also sustained Oct. 24 against the Flyers -- and DeBoer said the team would wait until he was ``symptom free'' to bring him back to the ice.

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