FORT LAUDERDALE – He’s back.
After months of hard work, Matthew Tkachuk will make his long-awaited season debut when the Florida Panthers host the San Jose Sharks at Amerant Bank Arena on Monday at 6 p.m. ET.
“I’m feeling great,” said Tkachuk, who initially returned to practice on Dec. 28. “Just so excited to be back. It was a little over five months since the surgery. Just champing at the bit to come back. Happy that the day is finally here.”
In August, Tkachuk underwent surgery to repair a torn adductor muscle and sports hernia.
Suffering the injury while suiting up for the United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February, he missed the final 25 games of last year’s regular season before returning to action in the playoffs and helping the Panthers win their second straight Stanley Cup.
Despite the injury, he racked up 23 points (8G, 15A) in 23 playoff games.
“I’m happy with the whole recovery process,” Tkachuk said of his rehab. “There’s a lot of people back in the training room and back in the weight room that I have to thank for getting me back to 100%. It took until January, but I’m happy to finally be feeling like myself again.”
In his return, Tkachuk, who’s logged 254 points (88G, 166A) in 211 career game with the Panthers, will be deployed with Evan Rodrigues and Mackie Samoskevich on the third line.
He’s also expected to return to the first power-play unit.
One of the top players with the extra attacker in the NHL, Tkachuk, despite missing time with injuries, ranks second on the Panthers with 91 power-play points since the start of the 2022-23 campaign.
In his absence, Florida currently ranks 22nd in the NHL with a 18.6% success rate.
“The difference between really good and average [on the power play] is one play a game, two plays a game,” head coach Paul Maurice said. “It’s not 10 plays a game. It’s just one pass. You get three power plays, and it’s one pass inside to Sam Reinhart. That’s all it is. You put it in the back of the net, and your power-play numbers are great. But that one pass is hard. Not everybody can make it. He’s (Tkachuk) is a player that historically has done that.”
As excited as Tkachuk is to return, his teammates might be even more so.
“It’s awesome,” forward Carter Verhaeghe said. “We’ve been waiting quite a while for this. To have him back, he’s a huge part of our team. Nothing but excitement from us right now.”
To be in the building for Tkachuk’s return, click HERE to find tickets for tonight’s tilt with San Jose.
