Elliotte Friedman Reveals Panthers’ Current Plans for Injured Aleksander Barkov

“The Panthers have opted not to place Barkov on LTIR,” Friedman said. “They could change their mind later if they wanted to, but right now Barkov is still eligible to play this year if he’s ready to do it — and the Panthers don’t get full (cap) relief.”

The 30-year-old center tore his ACL and MCL during a practice in late September and was ruled out for seven to nine months.

While that timeline would normally end his 2025–26 season, Friedman noted during a separate appearance on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio’s "Morning Skate" that Florida is leaving the door open for an unlikely return, either late in the regular season or during the playoffs.

“If you don’t declare [Barkov out for the year], you only get the $3.8 million in relief,” Friedman said. “You saw Barkov the other night. He made sure to go up on stage without the crutches, and he basically said [he 'd be out] five, six months.

“So I think we have to prepare for the possibility here that the Panthers and Barkov are going to wait to see if he can make a miracle comeback.”

The decision mirrors the opposite approach taken by the Vegas Golden Knights , who placed defenseman Alex Pietrangelo on season-ending LTIR earlier this month to gain full cap relief.

By contrast, Florida general manager Bill Zito and head coach Paul Maurice appear willing to sacrifice financial flexibility to preserve the possibility of their captain’s comeback.

Florida has opened the season 3-0-0 without him and will next face the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday, with puck drop scheduled at 7 p.m. ET.