Panthers recall 2021 first-round pick as team captain is sidelined

Earlier Tuesday, the Florida Panthers announced they had recalled forward Mackie Samoskevich from their AHL affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers. Without a corresponding roster move made, CapFriendly would report that captain Aleksander Barkov is out of the lineup Tuesday night as the team takes on the San Jose Sharks, giving context to the call-up.

The 24th overall selection of the 2021 NHL Draft, Samoskevich finally made his way to Sunrise after an electric career at the University of Michigan in the NCAA. In 79 games over two years, rostered on one of the most talented college hockey teams of all time, Samoskevich would score 30 goals and 42 assists, en route to finally joining the Checkers at the end of last season.

Making the Panthers out of camp, Samoskevich has gotten off to an unimpressive start, albeit after only two games played in his young career. Florida had given him just under 15 minutes of ice time per game, with Samoskevich getting four shots on net, and generating a -2 rating.

The team had previously sent Samoskevich down to the AHL a week ago in favor of William Lockwood, but will now need to cover for the team as they deal with a mysterious absence from Barkov. It is unconfirmed at this point whether or not Barkov is dealing with an injury or something else altogether, it is only confirmed that the Panthers will be without their third-highest scorer.