The Panthers may have star winger Matthew Tkachuk out for more than the next few games, but his absence won’t persist for the rest of the season. Head coach Paul Maurice confirmed as such on the Joe Rose Show on Monday, saying “he’s playing for us this year” even with the “possibility [his recovery] a bit longer term” (via George Richards of Florida Hockey Now).
Tkachuk missed the Panthers’ 2-1 loss to the Kraken on Saturday with the lower-body injury, which multiple reports indicate is a groin issue, he sustained while playing for the Americans at the 4 Nations Face-Off. Maurice said he’s undergoing final evaluations to determine a recovery timeline today.
Florida is comfortably in a playoff spot, but their final standing in the Atlantic Division remains to be seen and could be significantly impacted by Tkachuk’s absence. They’ve been passed by the Maple Leafs once again for the top spot, now one point back with one more game played, and they’re facing pressure from the surging Lightning in third place. There’s now a 20% chance of the Cats slipping to third and another 6.1% of them falling to a wild-card spot, per MoneyPuck. The Panthers have gone 6-4-1 in 11 games without Tkachuk since acquiring him in a blockbuster trade with the Flames in 2022.
Tkachuk isn’t on pace to reach the 40-goal, 109-point heights of his first season in Florida, but he remains at a 1.10 points-per-game pace and ranks second on the team with a 22-35–57 scoring line. He’s been limited to 52 of 58 games, missing five contests back in October with an illness, but remains the team’s leader in power-play goals with 11 and even-strength assists with 23.
In the meantime, rookie Mackie Samoskevich will be the biggest benefactor of Tkachuk’s minutes. He stepped into the latter’s usual second-line role alongside Sam Bennett in the Seattle game. While he didn’t record a point, he logged a season-high 17:23 of ice time and recorded two shots on goal and three hits. The 2021 first-round pick hasn’t played much over the past month due to injury and illness, but he’s been a solid depth piece in his first entire NHL campaign with 8-9–17 through 49 appearances.
An anticipated return before the postseason or early into the first round likely won’t impact the Panthers’ trade deadline strategy too much. Their top priority will continue to be adding a name to a blue line that’s punched above its weight this year after losing key names on last summer’s free-agent market, contributing to an increase of 0.47 goals against per game compared to 2023-24’s league-best defensive effort.
It’s a shame that a meaningless, Flag waving exhibition can keep a team from being It’s best down the stretch, And into the playoffs.
If Matthew Tkachuk is actually dealing with a groin issue (which I suspect its a groin pull most likely) then he’s going to have issues with it for the rest of the season including playoffs. It won’t matter when his return is for the season, just when you think it’s healed, the slightest wrong movement could trigger it & he’s back to sitting out again. Groin pulls take many months to heal & they are not fun. Tkachuk won’t be fully healthy from a groin pull anytime soon as he’ll need time much rest & get it treated in order for it to fully heal.
But how do you feel about the 4 nations tournament? Because I haven’t heard anyone mention that once on this website.
Personally, the 4 Nations tournament was okay as it’s not the Olympics or anything but I would have preferred the regular season to just have continued rather than the break for the tournament. But the 4 Nations was a big draw for the NHL (16+ million viewers) & pundits have praised the players for their competitive spirit & going all out during it.
Tkachuk’s injury for example could have happened in any kind of game or just in daily life. Groin pulls happen in all sorts of ways.
Trade for Brady now with Matty on LTIR and bring back Matty for the playoffs! Bennett centers Matty and Brady and they body their way to another Cup!!!!!!
Don’t think Panthers have the assets to get Brady, but it sure would be great to see them playing together, you have to believe Zito is making an effort
Panthers should trade for Brady and Miller, and then sign Shemp and Curly Joe in the offseason. Glad they poked the bear.
Wonder if the injury occured during the fight with Hagel? Regardless, having had groin injuries myself, they’re a tricky injury to deal with.