Panthers' Seth Jones Exits Winter Classic With Injury; Team Remaining Optimistic

1 week ago 2

Florida Panthers defenseman Seth Jones was forced to exit Friday's Winter Classic with an upper-body injury.

New York Rangers center Vincent Trocheck hit Jones up high with the puck, and the 31-year-old was forced to exit the game and not return. Jones had played just 3:00 of ice time before sustaining the injury.

When a player exits a game early and does not return, the fear is that the injury could keep the player out for an extended period. Fortunately for Jones, coach Paul Maurice is optimistic.

"It doesn’t look terrible right now," said Maurice. "He’s just got to be looked at tomorrow."

Maurice also went on to talk about how injuries have hampered their season, but that they are still trying to figure out ways to win despite that.

“That’s the theme of our year clearly,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “Every year has something. … This year is about we have to overcome these injuries. Figure out a way to win without your best players. But if you can do that, there’s a pretty good prize at the end.”

A pair of Jones' teammates commented on his importance to their lineup and how his absence could affect the team.

“It’s never a good thing when guys go down,” winger Eetu Luostarinen said. “He’s a big part of our team. We needed him on the power play and, obviously, he plays a lot of minutes, so a big loss there. But, hopefully, he’s OK.”

“You’ve got to go through it,” said forward Sam Reinhart, who scored Florida’s lone goal Friday. “Everyone goes through it. We’re no different. You’ve got to have guys that are able to step in and fill roles and produce. That’s what we’re going to need.

“It’s going to be a tough January. Everyone’s going through it. It’s a lot of games at this time of year for a lot of teams … So, this is going to be a big month for us.”

Jones was recently named to Team USA's 2026 Olympic Roster. With just over a month until the tournament begins, the hope is that Jones' injury is not a long-term ailment and that he'll be ready when the team departs for Italy.

For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.

Read Entire Article