Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad is set to miss the rest of the regular season with an undisclosed injury, per head coach Paul Maurice.
Maurice said to reporters on Thursday that the team is “quite confident” that the star blueliner will return to the lineup by Game 1 of the playoffs.
Ekblad finishes the regular season with four goals and 18 points in 51 games played.
“This is not new and it’s not unknown to us, what it is,” Maurice said.
“He’s got a real good handle on how long it’s going to take. He’s progressing really well.”
Ekblad was four games removed from returning from a lower-body injury which costed him eight games on March 28.
He left in the middle of the team’s 5-3 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on April 2 after delivering a body check.
Josh Mahura will draw into the lineup for the Panthers on Thursday against the Ottawa Senators in Ekblad’s absence.
Uvis Balinskis, who was called up from AHL Charlotte on Wednesday, is also expected to draw into the Florida lineup at some point, per Maurice.
This is a developing story which will be updated when new information becomes available.
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