Barkov, Tkachuk among Florida Panthers Going to World Championship this Month

TL;DR

Florida Panthers' captain Sasha Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk will compete in the IIHF World Championship in Switzerland this month. This marks Barkov's first competitive action after recovering from knee surgery.

Key points

Sasha Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk will play in the IIHF World Championship.
Barkov is returning from knee surgery.
The tournament is in Switzerland.
This is Barkov's first competitive action of the year.

Mentioned in this story

Switzerland

Florida PanthersSasha BarkovMatthew TkachukIIHF World Championship

Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

The Florida Panthers did not make the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs this year, but a number of their top players — including captain Sasha Barkov and Olympic gold winner Matthew Tkachuk — will play later this month at the IIHF World Championship in Switzerland.

This will be the first competitive action of the year for Barkov who needed reconstructive surgery on his right knee after getting hurt on his first day of training camp in September.

Barkov had been practicing with the Panthers toward the end of the season, and remained working out at the tram’s IcePlex in Fort Lauderdale in preparation for the Worlds.

Had he not been injured, Barkov would have been Finland’s captain at the Olympic games. He was one of the first players selected for the Olympic team last summer.

“I am very excited about that,’’ Barkov said last month. “I know, here, everyone wanted to make the playoffs … but thankfully I got an invitation from the Finnish team to join them at Worlds. Last time I played there was 10 years ago. It’s a big honor to represent Finland and it was one of those childhood dreams to win World Championships. That’s a big goal for me. I have been really hard to get in shape. Any chance I get to represent Finland is a big honor.”

Bill Zito, who will be an advisor for Team USA under Panthers’ assistant GM Brett Peterson, said Barkov is 100 percent healthy and ready to play.

Peterson will be GM of Team USA at the Worlds for a second time (2024) after being an assistant GM on last year’s gold-medal winning squad.

“In my mind, if a hockey player wants to play hockey, that’s a good thing,” Zito said. “Provided they have medical clearance, I would encourage anyone who wants to go, to go. … It’s a wonderful experience, a great tournament. It’s a chance for guys to actually have a playoff. It’s a great opportunity. … For [Barkov], I think it’s really special because he missed so much hockey. He wants to play hockey, so it’s great.”