Florida Panthers place star Aaron Ekblad on long-term IR

SUNRISE, Fla. — The Florida Panthers shall be with out Aaron Ekblad till at the least mid-November, and fairly presumably longer, after inserting the star defenseman on the long-term injured reserve checklist with a groin harm.

Gamers on the long-term IR checklist should miss at the least 10 video games and 24 days; the Panthers have 11 video games in that 24-day window, so Ekblad is out for at the least that many. He received damage in Florida’s loss Monday at Boston.

“We’re not completely satisfied about it, and clearly we’re involved for him as an individual first,” Panthers common supervisor Invoice Zito mentioned Wednesday. “However he’ll be again. It isn’t a season-ending factor. There isn’t any purpose to imagine he will not be again at something apart from 100%.”

Ekblad missed Florida’s remaining 21 regular-season video games final season with a knee subject and 21 video games within the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season with a lower-leg fracture.

And even with out their finest defenseman, the Panthers have discovered methods to win persistently over the previous two seasons when he isn’t within the lineup. Florida has gone 31-10-1 within the 42 video games Ekblad missed over that span.

“It isn’t a perfect scenario to lose a few of the key gamers from our group,” captain Aleksander Barkov mentioned. “However on the identical time, in fact, it’s a must to battle, not only for your self however for the man who’s lacking. It’s a must to battle for him as nicely, received to play for him.”

Zito mentioned that Ekblad already is figuring out in anticipation of his return.

Defenseman Brandon Montour additionally will miss Wednesday’s sport in opposition to Philadelphia, the second consecutive contest he’ll sit out due to an upper-body harm. The Panthers imagine he can return to observe within the coming days.

The Panthers recalled Matt Kiersted and Lucas Carlsson from their AHL affiliate in Charlotte, North Carolina, they usually have veteran ahead Eric Staal — who was in camp with Florida on a tryout contract — nonetheless skating with the group as a non-roster participant. Zito mentioned the cap-crunched group will attempt to discover a means so as to add Staal to the roster; his youthful brother Marc Staal, a defenseman, is in his first yr with the Panthers.

“Each single group within the NHL often faces vital adversity,” coach Paul Maurice mentioned. “It helps outline them. We’re not shying away from this.”