As his suspension nears its end, Aaron Ekblad is back practicing with the Florida Panthers
Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad, still serving a 20-game suspension, has been cleared by NHL and NHL Players Association for all team activities until his return to the lineup.
Ekblad was on the ice for the Panthers’ morning skate on Thursday ahead of their game against the Detroit Red Wings. It was his first time with the team since the NHL announced Ekblad’s suspension, which is without pay, on March 10 for violating the terms of the NHL and NHLPA performance enhancing substances program.
“It was great to see him,” defenseman Niko Mikkola said. “We miss him here. I haven’t seen him in while, so it was great to share the ice with him.”
Since Ekblad was suspended with only 18 games remaining in the regular season, he will remain sidelined through Florida’s first two games of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Panthers coach Paul Maurice said normally a suspended player is not able to return to team activities until 10 days prior to his suspension ending. However, because Ekblad’s suspension carries into the postseason and playoff dates have not yet been determined, the team had to wait for the league and the players association to decide on a day for him to return.
That day ended up being Thursday.
With that, Ekblad is able to do everything he normally would with the team, including travel, except for play in games until the suspension ends. Prior to this, Ekblad was not allowed to be around the team or have communication with them.
During morning skate, Ekblad worked on a pair with Dmitry Kulikov, who is recovering from an upper-body injury and could potentially return to the lineup this weekend.
“There’s lots of chirping at him, and it brought a little fun back to the group,” Maurice said. “It’s a little bit like you forget, right? Like you forget how big he is [at 6-4, 220 pounds]. And then he steps on the ice, and you’re talking your defense. ‘Oh, my God, we’re big now,’ because now [6-4, 213-pound Seth] Jones is on the ice as well. So you’ve got this big back end. It’s kind of like Matthew [Tkachuk]. You’ve got your lines. You’re putting your lines down and we’re always talking about that. You forget about the guy because he hasn’t been in the lineup for so long that it’s pretty good when he’s back in. Having him out there is just a reminder of how good a player he is. It was great to have him back.”
The suspension was accompanied by mandatory referral to the NHL/NHLPA Program for Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health for evaluation and possible treatment as stated under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
“The news that I had failed a random drug test was a shock,” Ekblad said in a statement released by the NHLPA at the time of the suspension. “Ultimately, I made a mistake by taking something to help me recover from recent injuries without first checking with proper medical and team personnel. I have let my teammates, the Panthers organization and our great friends down. For that, I am truly sorry. I have accepted responsibility for my mistake and will be fully prepared to return to my team when my suspension is over. I have learned a hard lesson and cannot wait to be back with my teammates.”
Ekblad, in the final year of an eight-year, $60 million contract, finished the regular season with 33 points (three goals, 30 assists) in 56 games played this season. He was part of Florida’s top defense pairing with Gustav Forsling. Ekblad missed eight games in a nine-game stretch in January because of an upper-body injury. He has missed at least 11 games each of the past four seasons due to various injuries.
He is the longest-tenured defenseman in franchise history, holding records for games played (732), goals (118), assists (262) and points (380) among Panthers blueliners.
Lineup notables
Maurice is continuing to use the final stretch of the regular season to give veterans rest ahead of the playoffs.
On Thursday against the Detroit Red Wings, it will be Carter Verhaeghe who gets the day off. Verhaeghe has played in 280 of Florida’s 288 games (including playoffs) over the past three seasons, including all 78 games so far this season prior to being a healthy scratch on Thursday.
Rookie Mackie Samoskevich is taking Verhaeghe’s spot on the Panthers’ top line with Aleksander Barkov and Sam Reinhart on Thursday.
In other lineup news, Nico Sturm returns after a four-game absence due to an upper-body injury. He will center a line with Evan Rodrigues and Jesper Boqvist, with Boqvist drawing in for Jesse Puljujarvi.
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