Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov will return to the lineup in Game 4 with a chance to sweep the Carolina Hurricanes, head coach Paul Maurice confirmed Wednesday.
"Ready to roll," Maurice said, per NHL.com's Jameson Olive. "Freshest guy on the ice."
Barkov was a full participant in the morning skate.
The 27-year-old sustained a lower-body injury in the first period of Monday's Game 3 after taking a hit from Hurricanes forward Jack Drury and was unable to return to the contest.
Aleksander Barkov spent the end of the period in the locker room after this contact at the boards#TimeToHunt pic.twitter.com/lQdBWnHT8v
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights (@HockeyDaily365) May 23, 2023
The Panthers secured the win in Barkov's absence, with Sam Reinhart scoring the contest's only goal in the second period and Sergei Bobrovsky holding down the fort with a 32-save shutout.
Barkov has logged four goals and eight assists in 15 games this spring, with two of those tallies coming against the Hurricanes. He has 32 points (13 goals, 19 helpers) in 33 career regular-season clashes versus Carolina.
The Panthers are zeroing in on their first-ever four-game sweep in franchise history, and their first trip to the Stanley Cup Final since 1996.
Puck drops on Game 4 at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday.
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