Jun 17, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers left wing Matthew Tkachuk (19) controls the puck against the Edmonton Oilers during the second period in game six of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Panthers in Free Fall During Injury Bug

Originally posted on Breakaway on SI | By Tyler Miller | Last updated Nov 29, 2025 11:00 AM ET

The month of November is winding down as the Thanksgiving holiday has come and gone, and for the Florida Panthers that might be a good thing. The defending back-to-back Stanley Cup Champions have lost 3 of their last 4 games and have slipped all the way to sixth place in the Atlantic Division.

For the time being, they do not seem like the same resilient team of years past that could overcome anything and stack points and stay at the top of the standings. It really seems like a struggle for them and head coach Paul Maurice as of late as they are missing key contributors to their lineup.

They are without star forwards Alexsander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk and Eetu Luostarinen, and depth forwards Cole Schwindt, Jonah Gadjovich and Tomas Nosek, among others. Those are a lot of key injuries and forwards to be down for the defending champions.

Most of these players were on both Stanley Cup teams and mean a lot to the Florida Panthers. The Panthers should be getting Tkachuk back soon after offseason sports hernia surgery which will be a major boost. But missing all of these guys as the season nears its second half has been troubling.

Panthers Should Be Back to Normal Once Healthy

The Panthers should hopefully get the majority of their injured guys back within the next couple of months and be okay to get back on track as the season keeps rolling along. Barkov is out for the whole entire year after having surgery on his knee at the beginning of the year, but getting everyone else back should be a boost.

The Panthers getting all of their guys back and healthy will have them right back at the top of the Eastern Conference standings soon. Nobody should be counting out Maurice and his club as everyone knows they generally are a resilient team that knows how to win and knows how to combat injuries.

As of late, the Panthers have not done a good job at combatting their injuries and have lost a lot of games without their key guys. But once the Panthers are able to get their guys back and start getting healthy, they should be able to start winning games again and making teams scared of them.

Being without their captain for the whole entire year has been a daunting loss for the Panthers, but Maurice and company should be able to overcome it. Maurice needs to get his team back in gear and back on the right track.

This article first appeared on Breakaway on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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