Maurice: OK to ‘Be Sad’ About Barkov Injury, But Games Go On

FORT LAUDERDALE — There was a bit of a somber tone around the Florida Panthers on Friday with what could be a season-ending injury to captain Sasha Barkov being on everyone’s mind.

Barkov was hurt on a non-contact play early in Florida’s first full on-ice practice of training camp on Thursday; he underwent surgery on his injured right knee on Friday.

While the mood was a little down knowing how much Barkov means to the Panthers, the workout on the ice was a little feisty with hard skating and a bit of physical play mixed in.

Coach Paul Maurice ended his press conference Friday morning by basically saying everyone gets a day to feel sad about Barkov and his injury.

But, life has to go on.

The two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers still have a lot going on in their favor and pretty big goals in front of them.

“You get one day to be sad,” Maurice said as he stepped away from the podium. “Tomorrow, I want everyone happy.”

So, how did you feel on Thursday after the injury happened?

“I was sad,’’ Maurice said. “I had my day yesterday.’’

Evan Rodrigues, who was set to continue playing with Barkov and Sam Reinhart on Florida’s top forward line, is one of the players who is directly affected by Barkov’s injury.

On Friday, Rodrigues moved to center the third line — allowing Sam Bennett and Anton Lundell to move up.

“You can’t feel sorry for yourself,” Rodrigues told FHN. “It doesn’t help anyone if you do. We got back to work today. The lines moved around a bit. Guys have gone down before. … As a team, you collectively come back together.”

Lundell, one of Barkov’s closest friends on the team, said he spoke with Barkov on Thursday night.

Barkov is a man of few words, but Lundell said he seemed to be in good spirits before undergoing surgery.

“He was doing alright,” Lundell said. “It happened pretty fast, he’s just going day by day. But he seemed to be alright, seemed to be in a good mood. Just wanted to wish him all the best and I’m sure we’ll each other soon.”

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