The Florida Panthers recalled defensemen Tobias Bjornfot and Mikulas Hovorka from the AHL on Wednesday, April 1, as injuries affect the team’s blue line.
Bjornfot has appeared in 26 games for the Florida Panthers over the past three seasons. He has played 11 games for the Panthers this season, recording three points on two goals and one assist, a plus-four rating and an average of 11:33 of ice time per game. Bjornfot also has 12 points on four goals and eight assists in 32 games with the Charlotte Checkers this season.
Hovorka returns to Florida Panthers
Hovorka made his NHL debut with the Florida Panthers in February and appeared in one game. He is in his second season in North America and has established AHL career highs this season with four goals, 12 assists and 16 points.
Before Hovorka made his debut at Tampa Bay on Feb. 2, Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice described the defenseman as a player with size, mobility and a long stick.
“He’s a big man and he’s got a long stick,” Maurice said. “He moves well. I’d categorize him more as a puck-mover than necessarily a banger, but he’s rounded that part of his game out with Charlotte.”
Florida Panthers dealing with defensive injuries
Niko Mikkola and Uvis Balinskis are sidelined for the rest of the season. Aaron Ekblad, Dmitry Kulikov and Donovan Sebrango sustained injuries during the Florida Panthers’ 6-3 win over Ottawa on Tuesday.
Ekblad blocked a shot with his hand, Kulikov took a deflected puck off his face and Sebrango blocked a shot with his skate. It was unclear which of the three defensemen would be unavailable for the Florida Panthers’ next game.
The Florida Panthers were scheduled to host the Boston Bruins at Amerant Bank Arena on Thursday at 7 p.m. ET.
Source: Original report