FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk returned to game action Monday night, making his season debut after offseason surgery as the defending Stanley Cup champions continue their push toward the NHL playoffs.
Tkachuk, who underwent surgery to repair a torn adductor and sports hernia, played his first game since helping the Panthers win their second consecutive Stanley Cup in June. He logged just under 21 minutes of ice time and recorded three shots on goal in Florida’s 4–1 loss to the San Jose Sharks.
“I’m feeling great and just excited to be back,” Tkachuk said before the game, noting that he waited until he was fully healthy before returning. “I wasn’t coming back until I felt 100 percent.”
The Panthers winger had missed nearly a full year of regular-season action, sitting out 72 games over 11½ months. He was unavailable for the final 25 games of last season and the first 47 games of the current campaign due to the injury.
Tkachuk returns with 35 games remaining in Florida’s schedule and the Panthers sitting four points out of a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Head coach Paul Maurice said the team plans to manage his ice time carefully but confirmed that Tkachuk is ready to play.
Despite multiple injuries throughout the lineup — including extended absences from Aleksander Barkov, Tomas Nosek, and several key contributors — Florida has remained competitive. Tkachuk credited his teammates for keeping the Panthers in the playoff hunt and emphasized the urgency to make a late-season push.
The return of Tkachuk is a major boost for Florida, which went 16–7 in last year’s playoffs with him in the lineup. He scored the Cup-clinching goal in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final, cementing his role as one of the franchise’s most impactful players.
Now healthy, Tkachuk says he’s ready to contribute immediately as the Panthers look to regain their playoff position and build momentum heading into the final stretch of the season.
