Panthers defenseman Seth Jones is out week-to-week with the upper-body injury he sustained in last week’s Winter Classic, head coach Paul Maurice told reporters today (including George Richards of Florida Hockey Now).
The injury also puts his participation in the United States’ Olympic team in question, but he hasn’t been ruled out. Maurice said he’s targeting a return shortly before the Olympic break, which is now under one month away.
The lack of a longer return timeline indicates Jones didn’t sustain a complete collarbone fracture as initially feared. He left the outdoor game against the Rangers in the first period after a deflected shot from Alexis Lafrenière appeared to strike him in the left shoulder/clavicle area.
Now in his first full season with the Cats, Jones has leapfrogged Aaron Ekblad on the depth chart to serve as Florida’s top defenseman in terms of all-situations usage. Averaging 23:29 per game, he leads Panthers D-men across the board with six goals, 18 assists, and 24 points in 40 games. His -2 rating is middle-of-the-pack, but advanced numbers show he’s still been among Florida’s best two-way defenders at 5-on-5, tied with Gustav Forsling for the team lead in Corsi share at 52.8%.
For a team without much organizational defensive depth that’s already missing veteran Dmitry Kulikov, a long-term injury to their top minute-muncher could be catastrophic – especially as they await the returns of Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk to round out their forward group. Florida has only been treading water as of late, going 2-2-1 in their last five, and remains one point back of the Capitals for the playoff cutoff while trailing the Sabres in points percentage. The Cats’ strong underlying numbers still have their playoff odds at 57.1%, per MoneyPuck, but those could drop considerably if right-shot Jeff Petry is overtaxed in a top-four role in Jones’ absence.
Jones, 31, is no stranger to long-term injuries. He’s missed at least 10 games in three straight years with thumb, shoulder, and foot issues.
Image courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images.