Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov has knee surgery, could miss season

The Florida Panthers could be without their captain for the entire season.

Head coach Paul Maurice told reporters Friday that Barkov was having surgery on his right knee after injuring it during practice on Thursday.

The Panthers are now bracing for the possibility Barkov could be lost for the season, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported.

Maurice added that the team hoped to provide another update later Friday.

Barkov needed to be helped off the ice after appearing to sustain an injury to his right leg during the first full training camp practice of the season for the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions on Thursday.

It was not clear what exactly happened to Barkov. He wasn’t able to skate off under his own power when he left the ice and headed to the team’s locker room.

Barkov led the Panthers in assists last season with 51 and was second in points with 71 — then added six goals and 16 more assists in the playoffs when Florida won its second consecutive Stanley Cup.

He is Florida’s franchise leader in countless categories, with games played (804), goals (286), assists (496), points (782), power-play goals (84) and game-winning goals (52) among them.

The Panthers already expect to be without forward Matthew Tkachuk for the first several weeks of the season while he recovers from off-season surgery to repair a torn adductor muscle and a sports hernia. Now, they’re waiting to see if Barkov will be out for any significant time as well.

–with files from The Associated Press

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