Good news: Big player returns to ahead of playoff.

SUNRISE, Fla. – The top spot in the Atlantic Division will be on the line when the Florida Panthers (46-20-5) return home to host the Boston Bruins (41-16-15) at Amerant Bank Arena on Tuesday.

Tied atop the division with 97 points each, Florida has played one fewer game than Boston.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun,” Panthers forward Kevin Stenlund said after this morning’s skate at the Baptist Health IcePlex. “Every game feels like a playoff game right now. It’s going to be a tough game, but a fun one.”

Getting two major pieces back just in time to play the Bruins, captain Aleksander Barkov and top-pair defenseman Gustav Forsling will return to the lineup for the Panthers. Barkov had missed the last three games with an injury, while Forsling had sat out the last two games due to an illness.

Aaron Ekblad, the other half of the team’s top pair next to Forsling, participated in this morning’s skate and is getting closer to making a return as well. Sidelined since March 9 with a lower-body injury, the 28-year-old blueliner is champing at the bit to get back into action. But given their position in the standings, the Panthers won’t rush the star D-man back into a game.

SUNRISE, Fla. – The top spot in the Atlantic Division will be on the line when the Florida Panthers (46-20-5) return home to host the Boston Bruins (41-16-15) at Amerant Bank Arena on Tuesday.

Tied atop the division with 97 points each, Florida has played one fewer game than Boston.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun,” Panthers forward Kevin Stenlund said after this morning’s skate at the Baptist Health IcePlex. “Every game feels like a playoff game right now. It’s going to be a tough game, but a fun one.”

Getting two major pieces back just in time to play the Bruins, captain Aleksander Barkov and top-pair defenseman Gustav Forsling will return to the lineup for the Panthers. Barkov had missed the last three games with an injury, while Forsling had sat out the last two games due to an illness.

Aaron Ekblad, the other half of the team’s top pair next to Forsling, participated in this morning’s skate and is getting closer to making a return as well. Sidelined since March 9 with a lower-body injury, the 28-year-old blueliner is champing at the bit to get back into action. But given their position in the standings, the Panthers won’t rush the star D-man back into a game.

Tied for third in the NHL in wins (32) and making a bid for his third Vezina Trophy, Sergei Bobrovsky will get the nod in net against Boston. Over his last17 appearances, the 35-year-old veteran has posted a 11-5-1 record while stopping 466 of 501 shots for an outstanding .930 save percentage.

Dropping each of their last two games, the Bruins enter tonight’s matchup looking to rebound from a 3-2 loss at Philadelphia on Saturday. After Danton Heinen evened the score for Boston and made it 2-2 at 16:12 of the third period, Tyson Foerster scored with 1:29 left to give the Flyers the 3-2 win.

Just one point shy of triple digits, David Pastrnak leads the Bruins in scoring with 99 points (44 goals, 55 assists). Prior to being held off the scoresheet in each of the last two games, the lethal Swedish sniper had found the back of the net a whopping eight times over his previous 12 games.

“Just be hard on him and don’t give him too much time,” Stenlund said of defending against Pastrnak. “Every guy in this league is good when you give them time. Less time is a good start.”

While Pastrnak has done a lot of the heavy lifting on the offensive side of the puck, Boston’s roster does boast six other players that have registered at least 15 goals this season: Brad Marchand (27), Charlie Coyle (23), Jake DeBrusk (18), Trent Frederic (17), Pavel Zacha (17) and Morgan Geekie (16).

Splitting duties between Boston’s pipes, goaltenders Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark have appeared in 39 and 35 games, respectively. Posting almost identical numbers, Swayman has gone 22-8-8 with a .917 save percentage, while Ullmark has gone 19-8-7 with a .917 save percentage.

Halfway done with their four-game season series, the Bruins have bested the Panthers in each of their two previous matchups this season. On Oct. 30, the Bruins claimed a 3-2 win in overtime at TD Garden. Less than a month later, they locked down a 3-1 win on the road at Amerant Bank Arena.

Looking for revenge, the Panthers expect to be flying right from the start.

“Both coaches will be wired up for this one because it’s going to be fun,” Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said. “The decisions you make matter and you feel like you’re part of the game a little bit. That’ll make it not one of 82 [games]. We haven’t beat ‘em yet this year.”