Injuries complicate Florida Panthers' three-peat quest

• The New York Islanders achieved the NHL's last three-peat during the 1982-83 season.

Yes, but: The Panthers will be forced to play significant chunks of the season without two of their best players.

Captain Alexander Barkov will likely miss the entire regular season and potentially the playoffs after the center had surgery to repair the ACL and MCL in his right knee, ESPN reported.

• Left winger Matthew Tkachuk will miss the start of the regular season — and might not return until December — after undergoing surgery on a torn adductor muscle.

What they're saying: Forward Brad Marchand said missing Barkov — the franchise leader in goals, assists and games played — is a huge loss to the team.

• "You can't replace that. But collectively as a group, you just try to all pick up a little piece of that, and hopefully as a group, you can come together."

The bottom line: Florida's roster appears talented and deep enough to overcome Barkov's absence, as the Associated Press reports.

• "Florida had 11 players with at least one game-winning goal in last season's playoffs alone, tying for the second-most by any team in any postseason run in NHL history," AP reporter Tim Reynolds writes.

What's next: Florida plays the Chicago Blackhawks at 5pm Tuesday at Amerant Bank Arena (📺 ESPN).

• Resale tickets were listed as low as $99 on Friday afternoon.