The Florida Panthers will be without forward Matthew Tkachuk for about another week because of an illness, a timetable that suggests he'll miss a total of six games for the reigning Stanley Cup champions.

Already playing without team captain Sasha Barkov, the Panthers will need to dig deep with Tkachuk missing the next week

If Tkachuk is able to return to action on that target date of Oct. 22, the superstar forward will thankfully only have missed five games. Prior to that matchup against the Wild, the Panthers will play the Bruins, Blue Jackets, Canucks and Golden Knights.

The Florida Panthers will be without LW Matthew Tkachuk due to illness against the Buffalo Sabres, per NHL insider Elliotte Friedman. In his place, Spencer Knight will get the start. The Panthers will also be without C Aleksander Barkov (lower body), who is expected to miss two to three weeks.

Panthers goaltender Spencer Knight, who hasn’t started a game in the NHL since February of last year, will be between the pipes when the Panthers face the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday night at KeyBank Centre.

Florida Panthers coach Paul Maurice told reporters on Monday morning that forward Matthew Tkachuk is expected to miss a week due to an undisclosed illness.

Matthew Tkachuk will be out about one week with an illness. The 26-year-old forward will miss his second straight game when the Panthers face the Boston Bruins at TD Garden on Monday (1 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS,