“It’s our time.” This was what Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk had said during the 4 Nations Face-Off. But it wasn’t Team USA’s time in the final and it hasn’t been Tkachuk’s time either since the NHL season resumed. After being banged up in the 4 Nations round-robin game against Canada, the forward had to sit out the formality versus Sweden. And even though he skated up for Thursday’s final, he could only manage 6:47 minutes of ice time. His absence during the Seattle Kraken game? That only sent the rumor mill into overtime. 

“We’re waiting for important medical results, and we’re hearing his year might be over, we don’t want it to be, but there’s some concern,” reported TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie. But thanks to Elliotte Friedman and the Panthers coach Paul Maurice, the situation is clearer and the news is better.

The NHL insider hopped on to X on Monday. He wrote, “On the @JoeRoseShow this morning, FLA coach Paul Maurice said Matthew Tkachuk’s injury (believed to be a groin) could be a bit longer term. “But he’s playing for us this year.” 

A day ago Maurice’s stance was different when he said, “I don’t know that anything changed in that game from the game prior in terms of his injury. He’ll get back in here today, we’ll look at him over today and tomorrow. I’ll probably have a better handle on (the injury) tomorrow but not a final one,” while giving an update on Matthew Tkachuk’s groin injury ahead of the Panthers vs Kraken game. 

Though the cameras didn’t show how Tkachuk sustained the injury during 4 Nations, reports say his fight with Brandon Hagel might have been the reason. And it was a shock to the Panthers fans when they saw Matthew Tkachuk on the sideline and not on the ice. But there is also an interesting story about his doubtful season. 

Maurice did not worry about the Florida Panthers forward’s comeback. But after Matthew Tkachuk missed the Seattle Kraken game, he spoke to the reporters about what really had happened and how much the story would unfold. “The reason that we’re vague on all these before we get the report is because there’s always a chance of everything, right? There’s always something unusual in one of these. I don’t think it is, we’re not worried about it.” The Florida coach said this on Monday. 

Actually, Maurice has been updating NHL fans about Tkachuk’s injury every day. His latest interactions include, “This is the day he gets seen by all the people he needs to get seen by. We’ve got a pretty good idea where it’s at, we just need to make sure that everybody looks at the pictures the same way.” Pretty serene but there was a mounting doubt. And a shocking fact? According to Rotowire, Fantasy managers don’t expect Tkachuk would return until mid-March. This season, Tkachuk has 22 goals and 35 assists in 52 games while averaging 19:14 TOI and adding 54 PIM.

Meanwhile, fans are not at all okay with the reason and tenure of Matthew Tkachuk’s injury. On the recent update of the Florida Panthers coach people have reacted with a different angle. Want to know how fans have criticized Tkachuk’s injury? Let’s find out.

Fans fuming over the Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk’s doubtful injury tenure

As soon as Elliotte Friedman’s update about Matthew Tkachuk’s injury hit the ice, one fan reacted to it asking, “Miraculous recovery before game 1 of the playoffs?” While another fan grabbed the Panthers team by the neck, saying, “He’ll play game #1 in the playoffs. Meanwhile, Florida can spend to the cap at the trade deadline. TB did it with Kucherov and Vegas did it most recently.” And if this was not enough, more fans jumped into criticizing Tkachuk.

Complementary to the above point, one fan commented on X, “He’ll be fully healthy for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup playoffs. No earlier or later than that”. Several hockey fans called him a selfish guy. Out of that many comments on X, one fan reacted, “Such a selfish move for him to ‘play’ in the final of the 4 Nations, when he knew he wasn’t healthy….while Kyle Connor sat as a healthy scratch.” And giving it a different flavor, another fan said, “Should be ready by the playoffs, let’s watch all the cap maneuvers before the trade deadline.” 

Importantly, the injury has not been visible on any camera which is making hockey fans think that the Florida Panthers and Matthew Tkachuk are playing! Let’s see if fan’s predictions become real or not!