Matthew Tkachuk will be out for “an extended period of time” for the Florida Panthers with a lower-body injury, general manager Bill Zito said Monday. “We hope to get him back for the playoffs,” Zito said.

Florida Panthers star forward Matthew Tkachuk, who injured his groin in the 4 Nations Face-Off during the All-Star break, will miss the rest of the regular season, the team announced on Monday. "Matthew's going to be out for an extended period of time. We hope to get him back for the playoffs," Panthers general manager Bill Zito said, per ESPN.

The Florida Panthers hope to have star forward Matthew Tkachuk back in time for the playoffs after he was placed on long-term injured reserve on Sunday.

Tkachuk (groin) won't be an option for Florida until the postseason after general manager Bill Zito told reporters Monday, "Matthew's going to be out for an extended period of time. We hope to get him back for the playoffs," per Jameson Olive of the Panthers ' official site.

Not playing Thursday

A dominant second period helped Matthew Tkachuk and the Panthers defeat his brother Brady and the Ottawa Senators 5-1 on Saturday night at Amerant Bank Arena. Despite the Panthers logging nine of the first 10 shots on goal during the opening minutes of the game,