The Florida Panthers will head into 2017 without Aleksander Barkov.
The forward is out indefinitely with a lower-body injury, head coach Tom Rowe said Thursday. He offered no further update.
Rowe said Wednesday that Barkov would be "out a few days" after the 21-year-old left that night's game early, but the injury appears more significant than initially thought.
Nick Bjugstad slides up to center Florida's new top line of Jaromir Jagr and Seth Griffith. Two-thirds of line now on the shelf.
— George Richards (@GeorgeRichards) December 29, 2016
Barkov was scheduled to undergo an MRI on Thursday, but there's no word on the results.
In his fourth season, Barkov has nine goals and 18 assists in 36 games, and was heating up after a slow start.
| Month | GP | G | A | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | 9 | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| November | 14 | 0 | 9 | 9 |
| December | 13 | 7 | 6 | 13 |
He'll be missed.
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