º£½ÇÉçÇø¹ÙÍøMaple Leafs’ Auston Matthews (left) celebrates his goal against the Ottawa Senators with John Tavares (91) during first period NHL playoff hockey action in Ottawa on Thursday, May 1, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
º£½ÇÉçÇø¹ÙÍøMaple Leafs’ Auston Matthews (left) celebrates his goal against the Ottawa Senators with John Tavares (91) during first period NHL playoff hockey action in Ottawa on Thursday, May 1, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
TORONTO - The second round of the National Hockey League playoffs gets underway tonight at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.
The defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers, who knocked off Sunshine State rival Tampa Bay Lightning in five games, visit the º£½ÇÉçÇø¹ÙÍøMaple Leafs, who eliminated the Ontario rival Ottawa Senators in six games.
The Maple Leafs, with new bench boss Craig Berube, finished first in the Atlantic Division this season, 10 points ahead of the third-place Panthers. They are in the post-season’s second round for the second time in three years.
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The Panthers, who added Boston Bruins’ pest Brad Marchand to the roster at the trade deadline to help Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett get under their rivals’ skin, have been to the Stanley Cup final two straight years — losing to the Vegas Golden Knights in 2023 and beating the Edmonton Oilers last year.
The Panthers, who draw confidence from physically imposing their will on opponents, will find eager challengers in Toronto’s Chris Tanev, Bobby McMann and Max Pacioretty, to name a few.
Game 2 in the best-of-seven series is Wednesday in Toronto, with Games 3 and 4 in Sunrise, Fla., on Friday and Sunday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 5, 2025.
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