Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad is out for the next 20 games after violating the terms of the NHL/NHLPA’s Performance Enhancing Substances Program.

Aaron Ekblad is going to miss significant time due to a shocking ruling from the NHL in regards to performance enhancing substances.

The league put out a statement just moments ago in which is stated that Ekblad was going to be out for a total of 20 games.

Per NHL”

Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad has been suspended for 20 games, without pay, for violating the terms of the NHL/NHLPA Performance Enhancing Substances Program.Under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, the suspension is accompanied by mandatory referral to the NHL/NHLPA Program for Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health for evaluation and possible treatment.

The National Hockey League will have no further comment on this matter.

Thankfully, Ekblad is taking full responsibility for his actions. He just put out a statement saying he took something to recover from an injury, and completely dropped the ball.

He certainly isn’t the first to do this and he probably won’t even be the last. There is no point beating himself up over it.

However, this does put his team at a serious disadvantage moving forward, which certainly isn’t ideal.

Aaron Ekblad out until the NHL playoffs

With the defenseman missing 20 games, the Panthers will only get Ekblad back for the playoffs.

In the meantime, they will miss his 33 points and +11 net rating as the team attempts to win the Atlantic Division in a tight race with the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins.

Either way, it is always a shock when these stories come out, especially when you consider that Ekblad is a star in the NHL.

Perhaps the league will now have to educate players on what is acceptable to take and what isn’t.