Claude Julien doesn't regret benching Max Domi after the talented forward took an ill-advised penalty during a loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday night.

The Montreal Canadiens head coach defended the move postgame, implying he wasn't just considering the one play in question when he decided to sit Domi for the final eight-plus minutes of the second period.

"I did what I had to do, simple as that," Julien said, according to Sportsnet's Eric Engels. "I don't have to explain it more than I did. It's not the first time he's taken a bad penalty. There's consequences, and sometimes those messages (date back a lot further) than the situation right there."

Domi took a roughing minor for this play involving Blackhawks forward Matthew Highmore.

Alex DeBrincat capitalized on the power play, putting Chicago up 3-1 in the eventual 4-1 victory.

Julien then pinned Domi to the bench for the remaining 8:33 of the middle stanza, as the 24-year-old didn't take the ice again until the opening minute of the third period.

The Montreal bench boss had an opportunity to put Domi back on the ice to atone for his lapse when the Canadiens drew a man advantage of their own with 4:36 left in the second, but Julien elected to continue sitting him.

"It doesn't matter who we put on (for the power play) instead of Max," Julien said. "Max is not the guy that's going to score goals all the time here, so a power play is a five-man unit."

Meanwhile, Domi took responsibility for his infraction.

"During the play, I certainly wasn't trying to take a penalty," he said. "But I watched the replay and it's a penalty. So that's how it goes. Unfortunately, they scored on that."

The forward added, "You can't do that - especially in the situation we're in right now. It is what it is. Coach's decision, and obviously I can't afford to do that."

Montreal's defeat Wednesday night was its ninth in the last 11 games. The Canadiens fell to 20-21-7 and are now nine points out of the Eastern Conference's second wild-card spot.

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The San Jose Sharks are still coming to grips with Peter DeBoer being the Vegas Golden Knights' new bench boss.

DeBoer, the former Sharks head coach, took the reins of San Jose's hated rival on Wednesday after the Golden Knights fired Gerard Gallant.

"Obviously not the team we expected him to go to,” Sharks forward Timo Meier told The Mercury News' Curtis Pashelka hours after the move. “But that’s the business. But it’s a good opportunity. Obviously, they’re a good team. (They) have loud fans. But yeah, it’s definitely shocking to everybody."

"It’s going to be weird playing against Vegas with him behind the bench,” he added.

Tomas Hertl echoed that sentiment.

“Every guy on the team was pretty surprised,” Hertl said. “It’s kind of shocking. Nobody expected the coach from Vegas to get fired, and right away Pete gets there. Nobody knows actually what to think about it. But it’s for sure big news and a really big surprise.”

The Sharks fired DeBoer on Dec. 11, replacing him with Bob Boughner on an interim basis. DeBoer was in his fifth season with San Jose, and he was dismissed after a 15-16-2 start following a Western Conference Final berth last spring, and a Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2016.

Boughner, who spent two stints as an assistant coach under DeBoer, wished his old boss well.

“Obviously happy for Pete," Boughner said. "I think it’s going to be a great spot for him. I knew it was just a matter of time. I didn’t know if he was going to wait until the summer and take a few months, but when an opportunity like that comes up, him considering taking it is very understandable.”

The Sharks-Golden Knights rivalry has been one of the NHL's best lately, and it came to a head during a wild seven-game first-round playoff matchup last spring. During that series, Gallant called DeBoer a "clown" for accusing him of chirping at Sharks players.

San Jose and Vegas won't meet again during the 2019-20 regular season, and both teams currently aren't in playoff spots. The Golden Knights sit just outside of a wild-card slot, although they're a mere three points back of first place in the Pacific Division.

The Sharks rank sixth in the same division and sit eight points out of a playoff berth.

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The Edmonton Oilers have inked defenseman Caleb Jones to a two-year contract extension, the club announced on Wednesday.

His added years carry an average annual value of $850,000, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.

Jones has split this season between the Oilers and their AHL affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors, collecting three points in 23 NHL games while averaging just over 13 minutes of ice time in a third-pairing role.

He's added 11 points over 14 contests with the Condors in 2019-20.

The 22-year-old made his NHL debut last season, appearing in 17 games with Edmonton during that campaign.

The Oilers' fourth-round pick in 2015 is the younger brother of Columbus Blue Jackets blue-liner Seth Jones. They're the sons of Indiana Pacers assistant coach and former NBA player "Popeye" Jones.

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Boston Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask left early in Tuesday's contest against the Columbus Blue Jackets after Emil Bemstrom caught him up high.

Here's another angle:

Bemstrom hit Rask just over a minute into the game and wasn't penalized.

Jaroslav Halak replaced the Boston starter, who the club later ruled out for the remainder of the contest.

Rask suffered a concussion almost a year ago to the day when teammate Charlie McAvoy knocked New York Rangers forward Filip Chytil into him on a Rangers goal back on Jan. 19, 2019.

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Brad Marchand seems to be taking his embarrassing moment well.

As of Tuesday evening, the Boston Bruins forward's only two tweets since he flubbed a shootout attempt Monday night are a photo of him hoisting the Stanley Cup and this response to a Twitter user with fewer than 900 followers:

Marchand whiffed while trying to corral the puck and grazed it on the way by during the shootout, which resulted in a loss to the Philadelphia Flyers, to the delight of Gritty and Marchand's social media detractors alike.

At least Marchand can still brag about Boston's 2011 title, as opposed to dwelling on the Bruins' final-round losses in 2013 and last June.

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The upcoming All-Star festivities in St. Louis will feature a new showcase of women's hockey players.

A three-on-three scrimmage between top Canadian and American female stars will be included as part of the weekend, sources told ESPN's Emily Kaplan.

This will be the third straight year the NHL invites women's hockey players to participate during the All-Star weekend. Last year, Kendall Coyne Schofield became the first woman to compete in the All-Star Skills Competition. She beat Arizona Coyotes forward Clayton Keller's time in the Fastest Skater contest.

Two years ago, the league invited members of the U.S. women's national team to demonstrate drills during the skills events.

The NHL is expected to reveal the new event - as well as a tweak to the All-Star Skills Competition - this week, according to Kaplan.

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One of the worst teams in the NHL cooled off the hottest as the New Jersey Devils halted the Tampa Bay Lightning's run of 10 consecutive victories with a 3-1 win Sunday night.

Travis Zajac scored the eventual winner midway through the second period and New Jersey netminder Louis Domingue stopped 26 of the 27 shots he faced against his former team.

The Devils' improbable victory came just hours after the club parted ways with general manager Ray Shero.

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One of the worst teams in the NHL cooled off the hottest as the New Jersey Devils halted the Tampa Bay Lightning's run of 10 consecutive victories with a 3-1 win Sunday night.

Travis Zajac scored the eventual winner midway through the second period and New Jersey netminder Louis Domingue stopped 26 of the 27 shots he faced against his former team.

The Devils' improbable victory came just hours after the club parted ways with general manager Ray Shero.

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The fallout for the New Jersey Devils' disappointing season continues, as the team and general manager Ray Shero have agreed to part ways effective immediately, the club announced Sunday.

Shero was fired, reports The Record's Abbey Mastracco.

Tom Fitzgerald will take over as interim GM and Martin Brodeur will serve as a hockey operations advisor.

Shero spent four-plus years with the Devils, who hired him as GM in May 2015. New Jersey made one playoff appearance during his tenure, falling in five games to the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2018.

Under Shero, the Devils were more often than not a bottom-feeder in the Metropolitan Division, finishing in last place twice and second-last once in three of the four previous seasons. They occupy last place once again as of Sunday.

New Jersey have failed to meet expectations this season following a summer in which Shero traded for P.K. Subban and Nikita Gusev after drafting first overall pick Jack Hughes.

The Devils fired head coach John Hynes and replaced him with interim bench boss Alain Nasreddine on Dec. 3. Shero dealt pending unrestricted free agent and 2017-18 Hart Trophy winner Taylor Hall - who he acquired in 2016 - to the Arizona Coyotes on Dec. 16.

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Darcy Kuemper will miss at least four more games.

The Arizona Coyotes goaltender won't play before the All-Star break, head coach Rick Tocchet told reporters, including The Athletic's Craig Morgan, on Sunday.

Kuemper is missing his 11th straight contest Sunday after suffering a lower-body injury Dec. 19 against the Minnesota Wid. Arizona classified him as week-to-week with the ailment one day later.

The 29-year-old was contending for the Vezina Trophy before the injury, leading the NHL among qualified netminders at the time with a .929 save percentage across 25 starts. Entering Sunday's action, only Pittsburgh Penguins netminder Tristan Jarry had a better mark among those with at least 21 appearances.

The Coyotes are also without Antti Raanta again, as the backup missed another game Sunday. He suffered a lower-body injury of his own Friday in his return to the lineup after missing the previous two games with a different lower-body ailment.

After Arizona's home date with the Penguins, the Coyotes host the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday before traveling to face the Vancouver Canucks and Edmonton Oilers on Thursday and Saturday, respectively.

The Coyotes then have the next 10 days off, including the All-Star festivities in St. Louis on Jan. 24 and 25.

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