NOTEBOOK: Ekblad hits the ice for first playoff practice

In today's Baptist Health Practice Notebook, Aaron Ekblad is making good progress, a few forwards take maintenance days, playoff beards are coming back in fashion and much more!
CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. -When the Florida Panthers took the ice for their first practice of the playoffs at the Panthers IceDen on Sunday, a familiar face was spotted back on the blue line.
Working his way back after missing the final 20 games of the regular season due to a lower-body injury, defenseman Aaron Ekblad, who has been steadily building up his strength since first returning to the ice in early April, was a full participant throughout the hour-plus session.

"No real updates yet," Panthers interim head coach Andrew Brunette said. "We'll see how he does after today, but he went full workload. Hoping he's ready here at some point in the series."
If all goes well, Ekblad could potentially be back in action when the Panthers open up their Eastern Conference first-round series against the Washington Capitals at FLA Live Arena on Tuesday.
"There's a chance [for] Game 1," Brunette said. "Again, we'll see how he did today. He seemed to be fine, but you never know with these things. They're kind of tricky. We'll see how he does."
The heart and soul of the defensive corps, Ekblad was arguably having the best season of his career prior to being injured during an awkward multi-player collision at Anaheim on March 18.
Despite being limited to just 61 games, the 26-year-old reached new career-highs in assists (42) and points (57), while also leading the team's rearguards in goals (15). A versatile, all-situations defender, he also ranked first among all Panthers skaters in average ice time per game (24:55).

Seeing Ekblad back at practice, fellow D-man Radko Gudas said the whole team got a boost.
"He had some great line rushes right away, so it was fun to see him back and feeling confident," Gudas said with a smile. "He's been our leader since Game 1. He plays the biggest role in our back end and was a stud the whole season. We're really looking forward to having him back."
Sliding right back into his old spot, Ekblad spent this morning's practice paired up with MacKenzie Weegar on the blue line, while Gustav Forsling teamed up with Gudas on the second pair, and Ben Chiarot and Brandon Montour rounded things out as the third pair.
For more updates, stay tuned to @JamesonCoop on Twitter all next week.
"He's a special, special player," Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov said of Ekblad, his teammate for the last eight seasons. "It was so nice to see him back. Now it feels normal."

MAINTENANCE DAYS

While the back end welcomed the return of a big piece, the Panthers were missing two key forwards this morning as neither Jonathan Huberdeau nor Mason Marchment practiced.
Additionally, Carter Verhaeghe did not skate with the team for the full session.
The good news is that Brunette labeled the absences as maintenance days.
"With Huby, I've got to hear back today and Marchy, I'm hoping for Game 1," Brunette said. "But I'm not sure."
Florida's leading scorer, Huberdeau set a franchise record with 115 points (30 goals, 85 assists) this season, while Verhaeghe (55 points) and Marchment (47 points) also posted career-best point totals.

IT'S PLAYOFF TIME

With the regular season officially in the rear view, it's nothing but playoff talk from here on out.
"You wake up this morning, you get to the rink, and I think guys realize where they're at," Brunette said when asked about players flipping the page. "They're excited. It's a fun day."
During practice, that excitement manifested itself in energy and cheers.
"We've been waiting for this for a while," Barkov said. "You work hard all season to get to this point. The fun starts now. We're really happy to be here in this position and ready to go."
By virtue of their 58-17-6 record, the top-seed Panthers, who won their first-ever Presidents' Trophy by finishing with the best record in the entire NHL, will kick off what they hope will be a long and fun postseason journey with a best-of-seven series against the eight-seed Capitals.
In three games during the regular season, Florida went 2-1-0 against Washington.
"I'm really pumped," said Gudas, who suited up for the Capitals in 2019-20. "They're an experienced, little bit older team, so they know what they're doing out there. They're big, strong, heavy. I expect a really fun series and am looking forward to getting started." For a full preview of the first-round series, check back at FloridaPanthers.com on Monday.

PUT THE RAZORS DOWN

With the playoffs about to get underway, you all know what that means.
Playoff beards.
A tradition like no other, Panthers players have officially put down their razors and won't pick them back up until their postseason run has ended. That means the longer they go, the more their facial hair will grow. By the time it's all said and done, the bigger the beard, the better.
Blessed with some of the best whiskers in the game, Gudas already has a strong head start.
"I don't know what to give them for advice if they can't grow it," the grizzled blueliner chuckled. "Some guys are going to have a tougher time, but maybe I'll trim something off and give them something. I'll appreciate anyone that tries. It's fun to see some guys not be able to. It's a gift."
Among others, Gudas said he's most looking forward to seeing what Patric Hornqvist can grow.
"I really want to have the reason for them to grow a beard," he said.
As always, fans are also encouraged to get in on the fun!
Come July, hopefully we're all looking like Tom Hanks in Castaway.

SUNDAY'S PRACTICE LINES

Forwards
Joe Thornton - Aleksander Barkov - Anthony Duclair
Maxim Mamin - Sam Bennett - Claude Giroux
Noel Acciari - Anton Lundell - Sam Reinhart
Ryan Lomberg - Eetu Luostarinen - Patric Hornqvist
Defensemen
Aaron Ekblad - MacKenzie Weegar
Gustav Forsling - Radko Gudas
Ben Chiarot - Brandon Montour
Robert Hagg - Petteri Lindbohm
Lucas Carlsson
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Spencer Knight
Jonas Johansson