FHN TODAY: Barkov Is ‘Fine,’ Misses Florida Panthers Practice

SUNRISE — Florida Panthers captain Sasha Barkov did not participate in Tuesday’s practice at FLA Live Arena but coach Paul Maurice said he did not think his injury was serious.

Barkov left Florida’s win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday night after being struck in the hand by a shot. He did not return.

By not scoring a point on Monday, Barkov saw his 11-game scoring streak end.

“I would expect if he practices tomorrow, and even if he doesn’t, he plays against San Jose,” Maurice said. “But he is so close, we expect him against Colorado. I think he is going to be fine.”

Other than Barkov, the Panthers had full participation at practice on Tuesday.

FLORIDA HOCKEY NOW

Sometimes mascots and fans go a little too far, but what happened Monday night in Sunrise was a little ridiculous.

Late in Florida’s 7-1 win over the Lightning, Viktor E. Ratt and a yet-unidentified Tampa Bay fan got into a scuffle after the mascot apparently got the fan’s jersey.

He was not amused — the fan or the rat.

• Aaron Ekblad was selected to play at his hometown All-Star Game last weekend but that may have been for the best. Ekblad has been playing through a number of injuries this season with the Florida Panthers and the rest may have been just what he needed.
• Matthew Tkachuk made a statement with a five-point performance in the Florida Panthers’ win over the Lightning. He made some Panthers history by passing Jonathan Huberdeau for most points by a Florida player through his first 50 games of a season.
• On top of a ton of video from All-Star weekend, Florida Hockey Now’s YouTube channel has all the video content you need to get yourself back up to speed. We have video from Maurice, Tkachuk, Sergei Bobrovsky and Eric Staal from last night’s big win over Tampa.
• Click RIGHT HERE to see everything all in one place and if you hit subscribe (it’s free), you will know when new content comes up.

NATIONAL HOCKEY NOW

The Pittsburgh Penguins did not look very good for the first two periods on Tuesday night but scored the game-tying goal late in the third and beat the Colorado Avalanche 2-1 in overtime.

That win gives the Pens a four-point lead on the Panthers for the last wild card spot with three games in hand.

The New York Islanders are also four points up and tied with the Penguins in points after throttling the Kraken.

• The Philadelphia Flyers are giving their season-ticket holders a refund. Sort of.
• Bo Horvat got his first goal with the New York Islanders on Tuesday as they are now 2-0 since acquiring him last week.
• The Boston Bruins continue to be linked to Jakob Chychrun.
• Speaking of the NHL Trade Deadline, here is Sportsnet’s top 30 players who may be on the move.
• The Lightning lost again on Tuesday, this time at home to the San Jose Sharks in overtime.
• Adrian Kempe of the Los Angeles Kings is an underrated star.
• Dylan Larkin says a lot of his fellow All-Stars were asking why he and the Detroit Red Wings have not worked out a contract yet.
• Sam Montembeault has had a pretty nice second season with the Montreal Canadiens.

PANTHERS ON DECK

SAN JOSE SHARKS AT FLORIDA PANTHERS

• When: Thursday, 7 p.m.
• Where: FLA Live Arena, Sunrise
• TV/Streaming: Bally Sports Florida, ESPN+
• Radio: WQAM 560-AM; WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys); SiriusXM
• Panthers Radio Streaming: SiriusXM 932
• Last season: Florida won 2-0
  
• This season — Florida leads 1-0: Panthers 4, Sharks 3 (Nov. 3)
• All-time regular season series: Florida leads 20-13-1, 7 ties
• Up Next for the Panthers: Saturday vs. Colorado, 6 p.m