Tkachuk Evaluates Possible Surgery Before the 2025-26 Season
Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk has not yet made a definitive decision on whether to undergo surgery before the 2025-26 season. The player acknowledged that, if the intervention is required, he could miss a significant part of the season. Tkachuk, 27, revealed after the season that he suffered a torn adductor and a sports hernia while playing for Team USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February. He missed the final 25 games of the NHL regular season but returned for Game 1 of the Panthers’ first-round series against the Tampa Bay Lightning. During the playoffs, Tkachuk accumulated 23 points (8 goals, 15 assists) in 23 games, including seven points in the final against Edmonton, leading the Panthers to their second consecutive Stanley Cup championship.After the season ended, Tkachuk commented that the possibility of undergoing surgery was “50/50”, indicating that the preseason would give him time to make a decision. The player stated that he “still hopes to be on the ice as soon as possible”. If he opts for surgery, Tkachuk estimates that he could miss several months of competition. “If I have surgery, it would definitely be the first two or maybe three months if that’s the case. But it’s not decided at this moment,” said the Panthers star, whose contract and salary cap could be placed on long-term injured reserve during his recovery. The offseason has been notable for Tkachuk. He appears on the cover of EA Sports’ NHL 26 and is on the cover of the deluxe edition of the game with his brother Brady and his father Keith. Matthew and Brady Tkachuk were among the first six players named to the U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team for the Winter Games in Italy next year. Matthew Tkachuk also married Ellie Connell in July. All this happened after another epic, multi-day Stanley Cup celebration by the Panthers in Fort Lauderdale and Miami, which included spontaneous appearances at bars, clubs, and beaches, as well as a championship parade. The Panthers’ chances of achieving a third consecutive Stanley Cup championship received a boost this summer when general manager Bill Zito managed to re-sign a trio of star veteran free agents: center Sam Bennett (8 years, $64 million), defenseman Aaron Ekblad (8 years, $48 million), and winger Brad Marchand (6 years, $31.5 million). Tkachuk said he wasn’t surprised that the three players wanted to stay with the Panthers, but he was amazed that Zito found a way to make the money work under the salary cap. “I thought, from the way the money was tied up, you didn’t know it was possible, and somehow it was,” he said. “Everyone was taken care of very well, and Bill did a great job of making sure it could happen. I think everyone was rewarded very well, and I’m very excited to have the opportunity to, hopefully, do it again with them this year.” Tkachuk said he was confident that Ekblad would return, as he has been a Panther since he was selected by Florida in the first round in 2014. He was a little less sure about Bennett and especially Marchand, who had the opportunity to break the bank in free agency. “When Marchand was first traded [at the deadline this spring], I would have thought we would never have the opportunity to keep everyone. But as time goes on and you have success and you get to know the guys’ wants and desires for the rest of their careers, you can start to connect the dots,” Tkachuk said. “People just don’t want to leave Florida when they come [here]. We have something very good going on right now, and everyone wants to be a part of it.”We weren’t optimistic at first about him surviving the first round.
Paul Maurice, Panthers Coach
