Aleksander Barkov injured the knee on Sept. 25. The Florida Panthers captain is the third key player who will be out at the start of the season.

Barkov is the heartbeat of the team, their top-line center, a three-time winner of the Selke Trophy given annually to the league’s top defensive forward, a tireless worker, one of the main players who exemplifies the way the Panthers play under Maurice. How does a team possibly attempt to fill that void?

It appears “future” Imelda is on track to remain east of South Florida this weekend. The forecast path shows the system moving northwestward over the Bahamas, Saturday into Sunday, bringing heavy rain and tropical storm conditions (winds around 40 to 50 mph).

Panthers coach Paul Maurice said it best in a media interview that the impact of Alex Barkov can't be replaced even in the Cats stacked lineup. Florida will hope Tkachuk is at least back to 100% when they get him back in the 2026 portion of the season.

SUNRISE, Fla. – The Florida Panthers announced today their youth and adult hockey programs for fans of all ages to sign up for during the 2025-26 season. The full list of programs include:

The trophy was on the last leg of a tour around the Broward County area, where the team is based, when it made a stop Sept. 25 in Vero Beach.

The Florida Panthers are back-to-back Stanley Cup champions, and now Matthew Tkachuk, Aleksander Barkov, and the Cats will attempt to do the unthinkable: make it three in a row. While Tkachuck is out until likely December,

Losing Barkov, who was injured during a training camp practice Thursday, with left wing Matthew Tkachuk, who general manager Bill Zito said had surgery Aug. 22 to repair a torn adductor muscle, also out at least until December, leaves the Panthers without two of their top forwards and their unquestioned leaders.