FORT LAUDERDALE - With each challenge comes opportunity.
On Friday night, the Panthers announced that captain Aleksander Barkov had undergone successful surgery to repair injuries to his ACL and MCL. Per the team’s statement, he’s expected to need about seven to nine months to recover.
“There’s not a next man for Barky’s skates, so we just got to share it,” head coach Paul Maurice said.
Barkov, a three-time Selke Trophy winner, recorded 71 points (20G, 51A) in 67 regular-season games last season, and his 22 points (6G, 16A) points ranked fourth on the team in the playoffs.
With no “next man up” for a player of that caliber, the whole team will need to step up.
"Any time you go through adversity, it makes you stronger, it makes you a better team, and guys want it more,” said forward Carter Verhaeghe.
Although the Panthers will miss the presence and play of their captain, the back-to-back Stanley Cup champions have shown how to win with depth, no matter who is in the lineup.
“We have a lot of leaders in the room,” said forward Anton Lundell. “It’s not going to be a quiet room. We have a good group of guys and we’re excited to kick off the season soon.”
In last year’s playoffs, the Panthers boasted nine different players with at least 15 points and 19 different goal scorers.
“We had guys last year that didn’t even get to play sometimes that deserved to play,” Verhaeghe said of the team’s depth. “I think it gives some guys an opportunity and it gives us a ton of confidence.”
While Barkov and Tomas Nosek, who’s month-to-month with a lower-body injury, will be out an extended period of time, the Panthers still also have plenty of depth down the middle.
During Saturday’s practice at Baptist Health IcePlex, each of the team’s top three lines featured two players capable of regularly taking draws: Sam Bennett and Sam Reinhart on the first line, Lundell and Eetu Luostarinen on the second, and Evan Rodrigues and Jesper Boqvist on the third.
Matthew Tkachuk, who underwent surgery in August to repair a torn adductor muscle and sports hernia, is also out of action and not expected to be back until December at the earliest.
But even with key players on the sidelines, the Panthers will still be deploying a roster that most other teams would envy when they raise their second straight Cup banner and host the Chicago Blackhawks for Opening Night at Amerant Bank Arena on Oct. 7.
That deep and determined group includes players like Bennett, last year’s Conn Smythe Trophy winner, Reinhart, the team’s regular-season points leader last year and a former 50-goal scorer, Marchand, a future Hall of Famer and playoff hero, and so on.
Five of the team’s top-six defensemen from last year’s playoffs are also back.
In order to fill the void left by No. 16, it's going to take 20 guys giving a little bit extra every single game.
“Collectively, as a group, you all just try to pick up a little piece of that,” Marchand said. “Try a little bit harder, try to fill in where you can. Hopefully as a group you can kind of come together. Adversity is good for a group. You never want to see a guy go down, but we’ve had multiple guys go down this year that have created holes. It creates opportunities for other guys to play more or step into a role they haven’t had before. Other guys get looked at that maybe they wouldn't have had. It’s where opportunities get created. Ninety-nine percent of guys, that’s how they get into this league - somebody gets hurt, you get an opportunity and a chance to seize a spot.”
As for anyone trying to doubt the Panthers due to their injuries, players don’t mind the noise.
In the coming months, they’ll let their play do the talking.
“I don’t think this group needs fuel,” Marchand said. “We know who we are. We know what our goals are and what we’re looking to do this year. Looking down the road at winning the Stanley Cup is the last thing you want to do right now. There’s such a long road before that and things you need to overcome and the adversity that comes. There’s a foundation that needs to be built. Headlines can come out all they want with what we can and what we can’t do.”
In recent years, all the headlines coming out of South Florida have featured the Cup.
Reflecting on three straight Stanley Cup Final appearances and back-to-back championships, the Panthers faced adversity during each and every run.
Every time, they rose to the occasion.
With a new test ahead of them, they’re eager to do it again.
“It’s another challenge for our group, and we’re usually pretty good at overcoming challenges,” said Verhaeghe. “It’s something we’re going to have to do.”
