Florida Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice shares positive update on the injury status of star Matthew Tkachuk

After finally winning the first Stanley Cup in franchise history a year ago, the Florida Panthers now have to deal with being the team that has a target on their back, and early in the year, they've done well, posting a 3-2-1 mark in six games played. Unfortunately, for most of that time they've been dealing with injuries, with both Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk being out of the lineup.

Now, Head Coach Paul Maurice has given an update on the latter, revealing some very positive news for Panthers fans, stating that No. 19 is on track to return to the lineup early in the week, with Maurice pointing to Tuesday's home clash with the Minnesota Wild as the likely occasion for the long-awaited return.

Tkachuck suffered an injury during the Panthers second game of the season on the road in Ottawa, and has been out of the lineup since, and given how important he is to the Panthers lineup, it's safe to say that fans have been clamoring for updates. In two years with Florida, Tkachuk has tallied an impressive 197 points while missing just five games, and with the team making the Stanley Cup Finals in both years behind his leadership, he's become one of the best players in the NHL.

Even with No. 19 out, the Panthers have managed some success due to their deep, star-studded roster, and with both, he and Barkov expected back in the next two weeks, this team is about to get much more dangerous, with the expectation that this team could again go deep in the Stanley Cup Playoffs this season.