Bad news on the blueline in South Beach.
When speaking to the media on Monday, Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said that defenseman Aaron Ekblad is expected to be out of the lineup for the next two weeks with a lower-body injury.
Maurice also stated the 28-year-old will be day-to-day at the end of the aforementioned timeline.
“We’re going to wait until he’s 100%,” Maurice said. “Shooting for the end of March, early April.”
Ekblad was injured during the Panthers’ game against the Calgary Flames on Saturday after awkwardly colliding with his new teammate, Vladimir Tarasenko, in the first period.
Maurice mentioned captain Aleksander Barkov should be in the lineup for Florida’s Tuesday night game against the Dallas Stars, while forward Evan Rodrigues will be a game-time decision. Rodrigues was also injured during Saturday’s game against the Flames. Florida Hockey Now‘s George Richards reported that it looked like Rodrigues injured his ankle in the 5-1 win.
The injury bug continues to plague Ekblad. The former first-overall pick did not make his season debut until Nov. 17 after recovering from multiple injuries during last year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs. Ekblad also was out of the lineup for one game last month with another lower-body injury.
The Windsor native has played just 46 games this season, scoring four goals and 13 assists over that time. In his 10-year career, having only played a full season twice, during the 2017-18 and 2018-19 campaigns.
In 671 career games, Ekblad has scored 115 goals and 231 assists, including 14 points in 40 playoff appearances. The Windsor, Ontario native is in the seventh year of an eight-year contract he signed with Florida in July 2016, which carries an AAV of $7.5 million.
The Panthers (44-17-4) are battling the Boston Bruins for the top spot in the Eastern Conference and the race for the President’s Trophy. They are currently one point up on the Bruins in the race for first place.
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