Panthers’ Aaron Ekblad practises for first time since neck injury

Florida-Panthers-right-wing-Jaromir-Jagr,-left,-talks-with-defenceman-Aaron-Ekblad-during-a-practice-session,-Tuesday,-April-12,-2016,-at-the-Panthers'-practice-facility-in-Coral-Springs,-Fla.-The-Panthers-take-on-the-New-York-Islanders-in-Game-1-in-the-first-round-of-the-playoffs-on-Thursday-at-Florida.-(AP-Photo/Wilfredo-Lee)

Florida Panthers right wing Jaromir Jagr, left, talks with defenceman Aaron Ekblad during a practice session, Tuesday, April 12, 2016, at the Panthers' practice facility in Coral Springs, Fla. The Panthers take on the New York Islanders in Game 1 in the first round of the playoffs on Thursday at Florida. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Defenceman Aaron Ekblad practised on Thursday for the first time since suffering a neck injury at the World Cup of Hockey.

This comes as good news for Florida Panthers fans, who saw their young superstar hurt after a collision with Leo Komarov in Team North America’s opening game against Finland.

He was shut down – with what was originally believed to be a concussion – for precautionary reasons, and travelled back to Florida after his team’s loss to Russia.

“It’s definitely great to be cleared and be back at full speed with the team,” Ekblad, who won’t be in the Panthers lineup for Thursday’s game against Tampa Bay, told NHL.com. “Obviously I’m going to take my time and get as strong as possible here.

“All these guys had a month longer than us to prepare. I’m trying to get strong in the gym, take care of my neck, take care of any other issues we can prevent in the future kind of thing. Once I do that, I know I’ll be OK.”

Ekblad, the centrepiece of Florida’s blue line, is a likely candidate to be named the ninth captain in franchise history.

He missed four games last year with a concussion, all of which the Panthers lost, snapping a team-record 12 game winning streak.

The 20-year-old will be entering the final year of his entry-level contract this season, before his eight-year $60-million extension kicks in for 2017-18.

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