Dmitry Kulikov considered week-to-week, so Panthers will lean on Tobias Bjornfot
Mar 16, 2025; Elmont, New York, USA; Florida Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov (7) gets up off the ice following a collision in the first period against the New York Islanders at UBS Arena. (Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images)The Florida Panthers are in the middle of their longest road trip of the season.
That's why they took the ice on Wednesday in Fort Lauderdale for an important practice before wrapping up the six-game trip.
Yes, you read that correctly.
Florida's previous game was Sunday on Long Island, and with three off days before they face the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday in Ohio, the Panthers took the opportunity to spend some time in their home homes before re-hitting the road.
Joining the Cats for their practice the Baptist Health IcePlex was newly recalled defenseman Tobias Bjornfot.
It's his second stint with Florida after spending eight games with the big club back in January.
"It's nice to have a guy that you bring up that everybody knows, when he hops into the room and he gets on the plane, this is normal for him," said Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice. "His games for us have been very good. He's one of those, he falls in that category of a guy that when you send him down, you feel bad because he hasn't done anything (wrong) on the ice. His play has been solid for us, we just have had depth at that position while he's been here. We feel very comfortable with him in our lineup."
Bjornfot be with the Panthers for the foreseeable future due to an upper-body injury suffered by Dmitry Kulikov during the first period of Florida's 3-2 loss to the Islanders Sunday night.
Kulikov is considered week-to-week, which a return not likely until early April.
"We expect him to play before the end of the regular season," said Maurice.
What that means for Bjornfot, at least for now, if that he'll take Kulikov's spot on the right side of a pairing with Niko Mikkola.
Starting Thursday, Florida plays three games in four nights, including Saturday at Washington and Sunday against Pittsburgh.
For now, the Panthers will keep things as simple as possible while integrating Bjornfot back into the lineup.
"It'll be about managing minutes over the course of the two games," Maurice said. "We'll run everybody as hard as we need to to win a hockey game, but at the same time, we've got to look at the look at the bigger block. The thing that I prefer to do when you bring something in is just make one change, move the fewest pieces as possible to start. So that's kind of the idea, him playing with Niko (Mikkola) as a start is a good way to kind of enter it."
Florida has dropped three of the four games on their road trip. Two of those losses saw the Cats blow two-goal third period leads.
Some stability and consistency will be what the Panthers are searching for this week.
We'll see if the addition of Bjornfot helps them get there.
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