FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The hits keep on coming.
Joining a long list of injured players on the Florida Panthers, Anton Lundell will miss an extended period of time with a rib injury, head coach Paul Maurice announced on Wednesday.
“That MRI wasn’t very good, so he’s not in the near-term future now,” Maurice said.
Lundell last played on March 19 in a 4-0 win at Edmonton.
“I wouldn’t play him in the regular season or if we were fighting for [a spot],” Maurice said. “Playoffs, maybe you’d play him with that, but he’s not back until he’s 100% pain free.”
Stepping into the big shoes of top-line center Aleksander Barkov, who has yet to play this season after undergoing surgery to repair ACL and MCL injuries in September, Lundell has produced 44 points (18G, 26A) and won a team-high 580 faceoffs in 64 games.
Still only 24 years old, Lundell, a first-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, has amassed 201 points (78G, 123A) in 359 career regular-season games, while also posting 46 points (12G, 34A) in 77 career playoff games en route to helping Florida win Stanley Cups in 2024 and 2025.
“You just don’t know how these things are going to heal,” Maurice said.
In addition to Lundell, Maurice had two other updates.
The leading scorer on the Panthers with 61 points (29G, 32A), Sam Reinhart, who’s missed the last five games with an undisclosed injury, had an MRI this morning to assess his injury.
“We’ll get that ready later today,” Maurice said.
Mackie Samoskevich, meanwhile, could return to Florida’s lineup as early as Thursday’s tilt with the Minnesota Wild after missing the last two games with a laceration on the back of his neck.
“Depends on how he feels and how he got through today,” Maurice said.
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