The Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning are starting their Stanley Cup Playoffs series on Tuesday. With the other seven series underway, all eyes will be on the Battle of Florida. This is their third playoff matchup in four years, igniting a rivalry filled with Stanley Cups. Panthers coach Paul Maurice provides an update on Matthew Tkachuk just hours before the series begins.

“With these long-term injuries, we just wait until the last [minute],” Maurice said, per NHL.com's George Richards. “He'll get checked out one more time just before we get it cleared.”

Tkachuk suffered a groin injury during the 4 Nations Face-Off that kept him mostly out of the championship game. He has not played for the Panthers since, hitting Long Term Injured Reserve. They were able to snag a playoff spot without him, but lost home-ice advantage in this series. If Tkachuk is back, the Panthers will be hard to beat.

Last year, Tkachuk had 22 points for the Panthers on their road to their first Stanley Cup. He has played 71 playoff games with 61 points, an incredible mark for a 27-year-old. Florida needs him back at 100% to win their third straight Eastern Conference title and match Tampa's incredible run.

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During the 4 Nations Face-Off, Matthew and Brady Tkachuk became superstars. They started fights in the first minute of the first USA-Canada game and scored big goals on their way to the championship game. Now, they could face off in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Brady Tkachuk and the Senators played Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, losing 6-2 to the Toronto Maple Leafs. But that series is far from over, and a young Ottawa squad could give a tense Toronto team trouble. The winner of that series will face the winner of Panthers-Lightning, which could lead to an all-Tkachuk series.

But the Panthers need to focus on the Lightning first, who had a dynamic offense all season long. Florida won the Stanley Cup because Sergei Bobrovsky was spectacular and their defense was stifling. This is a true battle of styles between teams that don't like each other. That is the ultimate recipe for a playoff matchup in any sport.

The Panthers and Lightning kick off their series on Tuesday night in Tampa. The Bolts crowd likely won't be too kind to the Cats, as one of the game's great rivalries writes another chapter.