Panthers’ Barkov took a ‘positive turn’ after missing two games. Team hopes he returns soon.
Aleksander Barkov won’t be on the ice Thursday when the Florida Panthers host the Vegas Golden Knights in their first game at the BB&T Center since the All-Star Break.
The club’s top-line center, however, has made noticeable improvements since suffering a lower-body injury in the second period against the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday.
Barkov participated in the Panthers’ morning skate on Thursday, his first time on the ice since the injury.
And while he is missing his third consecutive game, Barkov’s presence at the pregame skate was a positive and leaves coach Joel Quenneville optimistic that Barkov could return to the lineup against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday.
“We were looking forward to him getting on the ice and getting a better feel and read of where he’s at,” Quenneville said. “It’s a positive turn today. It felt better than we anticipated.”
Barkov was scratched from each of the Panthers’ past two games, a 5-3 come-from-behind victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday and a 1-0 overtime loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday.
They were the first games he has missed since sitting out the final two games of the 2017-18 season.
He understands that taking care of his health comes from, but the thought of returning to game action has crossed his mind.
“Of course I want to play,” Barkov said. “I don’t want to get bag skated at practices. But I have to take care of everything else first. Once you feel like that, I’m going to be feeling better than I have before. I’m working really hard for that.”
The Panthers certainly want him back, too, as they remain in the hunt to make the playoffs.
Barkov is second on the team with 54 points and 38 assists while also tallying 16 goals in 50 games. He centers the team’s top forward line, generally with Jonathan Huberdeau and Evgenii Dadonov on the wings.
He is on the club’s top power-play and penalty kill units as well.
“Obviously he’s a big part of our team, and having him out of the lineup hurts,” fellow forward Vincent Trocheck said. “We just need to fill the pods. Everyone needs to take a little bit of an extra step.”
A few players have stepped up in Barkov’s absence.
Mark Pysyk, now in a hybrid forward/defenseman role, recorded his first career hat trick in the Panthers’ win at Toronto on Monday.
Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, who has struggled for most of the season, saved 75 of 79 shots in the two games, good for a .949 save percentage.
And the Panthers, who entered Thursday with 64 points and clinging to the third spot in the Atlantic Division, picked up three points without one of their top players.
“We were fortunate to get points in both games,” Quenneville said. “Give Bob some credit in that area as well. You’ll take that any day of the week, especially with Barky missing two-and-a-half games. We put ourselves in a good spot.”
Quenneville said he will mix up the forward lines on Thursday to try to find the right combination without Barkov.
At morning skate on Thursday, Trocheck centered the top line that included Huberdeau and Noel Acciari.
Denis Malgin anchored the second line, with Brett Connolly to his left and Dadonov to his right.
The third and fourth lines remained the same from Tuesday’s game against Columbus.
This story was originally published February 6, 2020 at 3:30 PM.
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