FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The next-man-up mentality continues for the Florida Panthers.
After being hit with a puck in the first period of the Winter Classic and not returning, head coach Paul Maurice announced on Monday that Seth Jones is considered week-to-week.
Selected to USA’s roster on Friday, Maurice thankfully expects Jones to be back prior to the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.
“We expect him back before the Olympic break,” Maurice said after the team’s practice at Baptist Health IcePlex. “We’re hopeful for that. We think it’s going to be that, but he’s going to be a couple weeks away.”
Off to a great first half of the season, Jones ranks first among Florida’s defensemen in goals (6), assists (18), and points (24).
Playing big minutes for the Panthers in all areas of the game, the 31-year-old is averaging a team-high 23:29 minutes of ice time a night.
With Jones being out, the Panthers will once again turn to their depth.
Moving up into Jones’ spot on the second defensive pairing alongside Niko Mikkola, Uvis Balinskis logged 17:05 time on ice and a blocked shot in the 2-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday at Amerant Bank Arena.
“Balinskis stepped up into a bigger role tonight, played a lot more minutes, and he handled it extremely well,” Aaron Ekblad said of the Latvian defenseman.
Donovan Sebrango also drew back into the lineup for the first time in nearly a month and helped ease the minutes of the top-four, playing 11:23.
On Sunday, blueliner Tobias Bjornfot was recalled from the AHL to also help fill the void.
Plenty familiar with the team, Bjornfot played 14 games with the Panthers last season.
In 22 games with the Charlotte Checkers this season, Bjornfot owns seven points (1G, 6A) and a +6 plus/minus rating.
On the road for 10 of the next 13 games, the Panthers will rely on everyone to help stay in the playoff race.
“We’ve worked really, really hard here – by we, I mean everybody else – on developing a road game we all understand,” head coach Paul Maurice said. “We always talk about handling your day. We don’t look at these road trips as a long, painful block. If you can play every second day on the road and don’t have a lot of aberrations like a 1 o’clock game, it’s pretty routine. That’s a playoff mindset and a playoff format. We work on our recovery.”
