IRVINE, Calif. - Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov has been placed on long-term injured reserve and will miss at least 10 games and 24 days after suffering an injury during Thursday’s 4-3 overtime loss at San Jose, head coach Paul Maurice announced Saturday.
Barkov went down awkwardly in the second period while battling two Sharks for the puck in the right corner on a power play. He left the ice immediately, throwing his gloves in frustration as he headed down the tunnel. Maurice said the team is still awaiting a full diagnosis. “Barky’s going to see our doctors on Monday,” Maurice said following practice at Great Park Ice Arena. “We know that it’s going to be 10 [games] anyway, so we’ll see what they say.”
The injury is a significant blow to a Panthers team that opened the season Tuesday with a 1-0 win over the Carolina Hurricanes, in which Barkov logged 20:32 of ice time. The 31-year-old center missed all of the 2025-26 campaign with a right knee injury sustained on the first day of training camp. Maurice was direct in ruling out any connection between the two injuries. “It’s not related to his injury last year at all,” he said.
Barkov is the Panthers’ all-time leader in goals (286), assists (496) and points (782), and has won the Selke Trophy three times as the NHL’s best defensive forward. He helped lead Florida to back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2024 and 2025, and captained Finland to gold at the IIHF World Championship in May, recording 11 points - three goals and eight assists - in 10 games. Forward Eetu Luostarinen reflected the mood in the locker room after the San Jose game. “You never want to see your teammate go down, especially your captain,” Luostarinen said.
With Barkov sidelined, Lars Eller centered the top line during Saturday’s practice in Irvine. The 37-year-old veteran joined the Panthers on a one-year contract as a free agent in July and brings 1,186 career games of experience, with 440 points - 193 goals and 247 assists. Eller scored the Stanley Cup-clinching goal for the Washington Capitals in 2018. “No one is going to be able to replace Sasha Barkov, and I’m not trying to,” Eller said. “I’m just trying to play to my own identity and complement my linemates. I’m playing with really good players no matter what. I welcome that opportunity.”
The Panthers also have a second injury concern heading into Sunday’s 8 p.m. ET matchup against the Anaheim Ducks. Defenseman Gustav Forsling, who missed the San Jose game with an upper-body injury, is listed as a game-time decision. Forsling participated in warmups in San Jose but did not play, and skated for roughly 10 minutes before Saturday’s practice. “He feels pretty good,” Maurice said. Forsling, 30, scored the overtime winner with 4.3 seconds remaining to seal Tuesday’s season-opening 1-0 victory in Raleigh. A two-time Stanley Cup champion, he has recorded 221 points - 60 goals and 161 assists - in 558 career NHL games and ranks second among NHL defensemen with a plus-162 rating since joining Florida off waivers in 2021.
With no morning skate scheduled before Sunday’s puck drop in Anaheim, Forsling’s availability will not be confirmed until warmups. Barkov’s doctors appointment Monday is expected to provide the first clear picture of how long the Panthers will be without their captain.