Matthew Tkachuk Issues Injury Update Before Panthers’ 6-Game Road Trip

“Every box that has had to be checked so far has been,” Tkachuk said. “The last one before playing is taking off the no-contact jersey. We’ll have another few skates here and a couple calls and figure it out from there.”

Tkachuk confirmed he has a return date in mind but declined to share it. Florida’s upcoming six-game trip begins Tuesday in Toronto and also includes stops in Montreal, Ottawa, Buffalo, Carolina, and Washington.

Tkachuk hinted that if he returns during the trip, it would likely be toward the end of it, although he stopped short of revealing a particular date for his comeback.

“Whether I’m playing on this six-game road trip—I mean, if it were to happen, [it 'd] probably be towards the end of it, just because I’m still in the non-contact jersey, but I don’t even have a target right now, if that’s it or not,” Tkachuk said. “So it’s just gonna be nice to be on the road, getting the routine and figuring it out from there. But hopefully it’s not too much longer before you’re seeing me back out through the boys.”

Tkachuk credited his teammates for keeping the team in the playoff mix despite having to navigate several major injuries to a few of their key players.

Florida has played without Aleksander Barkov, Dmitry Kulikov, and Seth Jones in recent weeks, but is coming off a win over the NHL-best Colorado Avalanche to get closer to the second wild-card spot, only one point off of it after Sunday's win.

Florida opens its road swing Tuesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs at 7:00 p.m. ET.