Panthers Fall 3-2 in Overtime at Anaheim in First Game Without Injured Captain Aleksander Barkov

The Florida Panthers played their first game without captain Aleksander Barkov on Sunday night and lost 3-2 in overtime to the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center, a game Brad Marchand had rescued with a tying goal in the final two minutes of his season debut before Mikael Granlund won it on a power play with 46 seconds left in overtime.

Cutter Gauthier scored twice on the power play for Anaheim. The loss dropped Florida to 1-0-2 after three games, all of them decided in overtime, and it came three days after Barkov's left knee buckled in San Jose in an injury that has put the Panthers' captain on long-term injured reserve with no timeline for his return.

Barkov's injury hangs over the trip

Barkov was hurt in the second period of Florida's 4-3 overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks on Thursday, Oct. 1. His left knee appeared to buckle during a scrum along the boards with Sharks defenseman Darnell Nurse and forward Zack Ostapchuk, and he immediately left the ice, throwing his glove down as he headed to the tunnel, according to The Associated Press.

The Panthers placed the 31-year-old Finn on long-term injured reserve on Saturday, Oct. 3, with what the team called a lower-body injury. The designation means he must miss at least 10 games and 24 days. He was scheduled to see a doctor Monday to determine the extent of the injury, according to NHL.com.

The timing is brutal. Barkov missed the entire 2025-26 season after tearing the ACL and MCL in his right knee on the first day of training camp, and the San Jose game was only his second back. Coach Paul Maurice said the new injury is a separate problem. "It's not related to his injury last year at all," Maurice said after the Sharks game, according to the AP.

Maurice also told reporters that, without a diagnosis, the situation does not yet feel like last season, according to NHL.com. ESPN reported, citing sources, that the Panthers are optimistic the injury is not season-ending and that an MRI over the weekend did not reveal the worst-case scenario. The team has not announced a diagnosis.

Marchand's late equalizer

Marchand had not played in a game since March 6, when a lower-body injury ended his season, and he underwent offseason surgery. He returned on Sunday and tied the game 2-2 at 18:10 of the third period, with 1:50 left in regulation, to earn Florida a point.

After the game, Marchand told reporters the return was a rude awakening and that the speed and intensity of the game ramped up at times, according to NHL.com. He also praised the team's chemistry.

Carter Verhaeghe scored Florida's other goal, tying the game 1-1 at 17:09 of the first period, less than a minute after Gauthier's first power-play goal at 16:18. Gauthier restored Anaheim's lead 47 seconds into the second period with another power-play goal.

Special teams decide it

All three Anaheim goals came with the man advantage. Granlund, the Ducks' captain, redirected a centering pass from Leo Carlsson 4:14 into overtime for the winner. Carlsson finished with three assists.

Gauthier, who had two goals and an assist, recorded the 12th multi-goal game of his career in his first home game since signing a six-year, $81 million contract extension after a 41-goal season, according to the AP. Anaheim improved to 2-0-0 and won its 11th straight home opener, extending a team record.

Florida outshot Anaheim 31-21 but could not solve Lukas Dostal, who made 29 saves. Jacob Markstrom stopped 18 shots for the Panthers.

Markstrom, 36, is in his second stint with Florida. The Panthers acquired him from the New Jersey Devils this summer in a trade that sent forwards Evan Rodrigues, Jesper Boqvist and Ben Steeves to New Jersey. He began his NHL career with Florida, playing his first four seasons there, and opened this season with a 15-save shutout. He went 23-19-1 with a 3.07 goals-against average and an .883 save percentage in 44 games for New Jersey last season, according to NHL.com, and with Barkov out, Florida will lean on him to keep games close while the offense adjusts.

A depleted lineup

Barkov was not the only regular missing. Defenseman Aaron Ekblad was a late scratch and returned to Florida because of a personal matter, according to NHL.com, and he will not play Tuesday in Los Angeles. Defenseman Gustav Forsling, a late scratch in San Jose, returned and played 20:25.

The Panthers have been living in overtime all week. Their results through three games:

The opener in Raleigh came on the night the Hurricanes raised their 2026 Stanley Cup banner. Markstrom stopped all 15 shots he faced and Forsling won it with a shot past Brandon Bussi in the final seconds of overtime.

In San Jose, the Panthers fell behind by three goals, then rallied to force overtime. Eetu Luostarinen scored twice and Matthew Tkachuk tied the game at 5:18 of the third period before Cagnoni won it for the Sharks. Barkov was hurt earlier in that game.

The four points Florida has from three games keep the Panthers above water in the standings, but the margin for a team now without its captain, and for now without Ekblad, is thin. The Panthers have scored six goals in three games, and each night has come down to one shot in overtime.

What's next

The Panthers finish their season-opening road swing Tuesday, Oct. 6, at the Los Angeles Kings, who are holding their home opener at Crypto.com Arena. The game is scheduled for 10 p.m. ET.

The next major development may come off the ice: the results of Barkov's Monday examination should give the Panthers, and their fans in South Florida, the first real sense of how long Florida will be without its captain. Under LTIR rules, the earliest he can return is after Florida has played 10 more games and 24 days have passed.

Anaheim hosts the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday.