Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov left the game early in the second period of a 4-3 overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks on Thursday night. The injury occurred when his left knee appeared to buckle during a scrum along the boards with Sharks defenseman Darnell Nurse and forward Zack Ostapchuk. Barkov immediately skated off the ice, throwing his glove on the ground as he headed into the tunnel.
Panthers coach Paul Maurice did not provide specific details on the injury after the game but stated that Barkov would undergo further evaluation on Friday. This marks a concerning development for the 31-year-old Finnish forward, who missed the entire previous season after tearing his ACL and MCL during training camp. Barkov was playing only his second game of the current season.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source: ESPN NHL · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing