The Florida Panthers took a major blow with the loss of Aleksander Barkov.
The club's top center was lost to injury in late December, missing 11 games since then. But in his absence, fellow middleman Vincent Trocheck has proven to be an admirable fill-in.
Rowe said there is concern on Huby and Barkov being season ending injuries. Finally said Barky'sinjury is upper body not lower.#flapanthers
— Harvey Fialkov (@hfialkov) January 19, 2017
With Barkov sidelined, Trocheck has seen increased responsibility under coach Tom Rowe. The results are paying off, with his production having nearly tripled since Dec. 29.
| Date Range | GP | G-A-Pts | Pts/GP | TOI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before Dec. 29 | 35 | 8-8-16 | 0.46 | 21:20 |
| After Dec. 29 | 11 | 8-8-14 | 1.27 | 22:14 |
The 23-year-old had a breakout season with the Panthers last year, finishing with 53 points in 76 games after posting 30 points in his previous 70 contests with the club. He proved to be a key cog on a squad that finished with a franchise-best 103 points.
This season, the Panthers are once again in the postseason mix, sitting just one point back of the second wild-card spot in the East.
With Barkov's return to the lineup not in the immediate future, the Panthers will continue to turn to Trocheck as Florida looks to return to the playoffs for just the fourth time since 2000.
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