As Panthers await second-round opponent, eyes are on Boston-Toronto. Plus injury updates

Anton Lundell, like most hockey players, enjoys playing in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Lundell, also like most hockey players, enjoys watching the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Florida Panthers’ 22-year-old center has been keeping an eye on what has been going on throughout the early stages of the postseason, watching games and highlights on nights the Panthers aren’t playing.

“It’s fun to follow,” Lundell said.

Lundell and his Panthers teammates have a keen interest on one first-round series in particular that is still ongoing: The Boston Bruins against the Toronto Maple Leafs, considering Florida will face the winner of that series in Round 2.

Boston currently leads that best-of-7 series 3-2. Game 6 is at 8 p.m. Thursday in Toronto. A Boston win advances the Bruins to Round 2. Should Toronto win, the Maple Leafs and Bruins will play a winner-take-all Game 7 on Saturday in Boston.

“I think every game in the playoffs, you’re paying attention to,” Panthers forward Sam Reinhart said. “It’s the best time of year as a player and as a fan. Certainly that series is something we’re working on and focusing on more than than others right now. You’ve got to take advantage of this opportunity, both mentally and physically to rest, but we’re excited about that next challenge ahead, whoever it may be.”

The Panthers, who beat the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games to advance to the second round of the playoffs for a third consecutive season, faced both the Bruins and the Maple Leafs in the postseason a year ago on their way to an unexpected run to the Stanley Cup Finals. Florida rallied from a 3-1 series deficit to beat the Bruins in the first round and then beat the Maple Leafs in five games in Round 2.

The Bruins won all four regular-season games against Florida this season — twice in regulation in Sunrise and twice in overtime in Boston. Florida went 2-1-1 against Toronto in the regular season.

“There will be no emotional letdown,” star Panthers winger Matthew Tkachuk said. “Whoever we play, it’s going to be another very intense and very fun series to be a part of. Each team is great. There’s gonna be no emotional letdown from us, and we’ll be ready to go. Get rested here and get back and hopefully, come out swinging again.”

Sam Bennett update

Panthers coach Paul Maurice on Wednesday said center Sam Bennett will skate Thursday for the first time since sustaining a wrist/hand injury in Game 2 against the Lightning.

Could Bennett be available for Florida’s second-round playoff matchup?

“It’s a very real possibility,” Maurice said.

When healthy, Bennett centers Florida’s second line with Tkachuk and Carter Verhaeghe on the wings. In Bennett’s absence, Lundell has been the primary player filling in on that line and performed well in that role during the Lightning series. In 33 minutes together at 5-on-5 play, the Verhaeghe-Lundell-Tkachuk line outshot the Lightning 18-9 and outscored them 3-0 while limiting Tampa Bay to just two high-danger chances, according to the advanced hockey statistics website Natural Stat Trick.

Balancing the time off

Depending on the outcome of the Bruins-Maple Leafs series, the Panthers could go as long as a week in between playoffs games after they wrapped up their first-round series with the Lightning on Monday.

How is the team preparing with potentially so much downtime in the interim?

“Not being afraid of it early,” Maurice said. “At the end of our regular season this year, we took two days off the ice, but the training is going on. It’s very hard — it can be — and then we’ll do two day blocks. ... We’re playing with it. We have a sports science group. We’ve got a new facility and lots of things we can do for recovery for these guys. We’re exploring all that. We’re trying to learn, too. It’s not that we set a program and we’re standing with it. If there’s a better way to do it, that’s what we’re doing.”

Quote of the day

“A series like this could have easily went seven and could have easily went four. That’s playoff hockey. The more tight games you can come out on top, the better is for your confidence, the better it is to be comfortable in those situations moving forward. It can be a snowball effect at this time of year. Roll them over. You get that good feeling. You’re confident in those close games. Those are important wins for us.” — Reinhart on how tight the games were in the Lightning series, with all five games being tied or within one goal entering the third period.