Marchand says knee injury could keep him out until December

Florida Panthers forward Brad Marchand said Thursday he could be five to six weeks away from playing again as he recovers from a left knee injury. He gave the update at the team’s JetBlue unveiling in South Florida.

Marchand has been skating for more than a week. He injured his knee Oct. 6 against the Los Angeles Kings and had to be helped off the ice. Panthers coach Paul Maurice initially gave a six-week estimate on Oct. 9.

Marchand has been skating separately from the team with captain Aleksander Barkov, who is also recovering from a knee injury. Maurice said the next step would be to bring both players into regular practice.