Panthers' Kulikov to miss five months after shoulder surgery

Dmitry Kulikov will be sidelined for roughly five months after undergoing surgery to repair a labral tear in his right shoulder, Florida Panthers coach Paul Maurice said Wednesday, leaving the team short-handed on the blue line following an Oct. 9 injury in a 2-1 home win over the Philadelphia Flyers. Kulikov was placed on injured reserve on Friday after leaving that game in the second period clutching his right arm, and the timetable announced by Maurice projects a return around mid-March.

Kulikov left the Flyers game after attempting a hit on Bobby Brink near center ice, holding his wrist as he exited with 9:41 remaining in the second period. The veteran defenseman underwent the operation Wednesday morning and will be the fourth Panther on injured reserve to start the season. Forwards Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk and Tomas Nosek are already sidelined while recovering from separate surgeries.

The Panthers moved quickly to fill the roster gap. Uvis Balinskis, who had been a regular depth defenseman last season, will slot into Kulikov's spot on the third pairing alongside Jeff Petry. Florida also recalled defenseman Tobias Bjornfot from the Charlotte Checkers of the...