Dmitri Kulikov has undergone hip surgery and will be out for five months for the Florida Panthers, coach Paul Maurice announced Wednesday.
The defenseman, who turns 35 on Oct. 29, suffered the injury in Florida’s second game of the season on Oct. 9, a 2-1 win against the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Panthers are also without a center Alexander Barkov (knee) for 7-9 months and beyond Matthew Tkachuk (torn adductor muscle) until at least December. In the middle of the fourth line Tomas Neusek is also out due to what general manager Bill Zito called a “long-term injury.”
Kulikov will be replaced by Uvis Balinskis against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Wednesday (7 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, TNT, TVAS). Defender Tobias Bjornfot was recalled from Charlotte of the American Hockey League on Sunday.
“Dmitry is like some of the other players we have in the lineup; he is unique in his role,” Maurice said. “Excellent penalty killer. Physical player in the five, six.” [spot on defense]but he can skate and close gaps. So that’s the gap.
“Uvis played, I believe, 74 games for us last year (76), so we’ll bring in an experienced player who has played here. So again, it’s the same concept. You don’t replace the guys you have out of the lineup. The weight doesn’t get heavier. You just have less guys to lift, right? So everyone shares it.”
“We fully expect Uvis to play the game he can play. He won’t be given any room not to do that. But that’s positive for us. We think we’re putting in a guy who is very capable.”
Kulikov has 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 70 regular-season games and five points (two goals, three assists) in 23 Stanley Cup Playoff games last season, helping the Panthers win their second straight championship.
Selected by Florida in the first round (No. 14) of the 2009 NHL Draft, Kulikov has 247 points (50 goals, 197 assists) in 1,020 regular season games with the Panthers, Buffalo Sabers, Winnipeg Jets, New Jersey Devils, Edmonton Oilers, Minnesota Wild, Anaheim Ducks and Pittsburgh Penguins, and 15 points (three goals, 12 assists) in 76 playoff games.
NHL.com columnist Nicholas J. Cotsonika contributed to this report
#Kulikov #months #Panthers #hip #surgery #Pro #Hockey #News