Winnipeg Jets pivot Mark Scheifele has been handed a four-game suspension for charging Montreal Canadiens forward Jake Evans on Wednesday night, the NHL's Department of Player Safety announced.

Scheifele was assessed a charging major and a game misconduct on the play.

Evans had to be stretchered off the ice and is out indefinitely with a concussion.

Copyright © 2021 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Montreal Canadiens forward Jake Evans had to be stretchered off the ice in Game 1 after taking a vicious hit from Winnipeg Jets center Mark Scheifele.

Scheifele lined up Evans from across the ice as the Canadiens player buried an empty-netter with less than a minute remaining in the contest.

The Jets pivot was handed a charging major and game misconduct.

Here's a look from another angle:

Scheifele left his feet, led with his elbow, and appeared to make contact with Evans' head.

Habs defenseman Joel Edmundson took issue with the hit, saying there will be repercussions if Scheifele appears again in the series.

"It was a dirty hit, but the league's going to take care of it," he told reporters postgame, per TSN's John Lu. "If (Scheifele) gets back in the series, we're going to make his life miserable."

Jesperi Kotkaniemi also defended his teammate.

"It's disgusting. Little respect for the players out there," Kotkaniemi said. "Just seeing (Evans) moving (on the stretcher) after a thing like that was huge."

Evans had movement in his arms as he left the ice.

Montreal held on for the 5-3 win.

Copyright © 2021 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Buffalo Sabres will select first overall in July after winning the NHL draft lottery.

The Seattle Kraken moved up to second, dropping the Anaheim Ducks to third. There were no other changes based on the pre-lottery odds.

Here's the order of the first 15 picks:

The Arizona Coyotes forfeited their first-round pick for violating the NHL's combine testing policy in 2019-20. A redraw would've occurred if the Coyotes won.

There's no consensus top player in this year's draft. Canadian defenseman Owen Power is the top-ranked North American skater, while Swedish winger William Eklund is the No. 1-ranked international skater, according to NHL Central Scouting.

The Sabres have picked first overall three times in franchise history. They selected Gilbert Perreault in 1970, Pierre Turgeon in 1987, and Rasmus Dahlin in 2018.

Copyright © 2021 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind'Amour did not offer a promising assessment on center Vincent Trocheck's injury sustained in Game 2 against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

"Doesn't look good," Brind'Amour said postgame, according to Luke DeCock of the Raleigh News & Observer. "I don't know the extent of it at this point but, obviously, he couldn't continue. You know he would have come back and played if he could."

Trocheck collided with teammate Warren Foegele in the second period. He returned to start the third but departed again.

Carolina's forward depth will be tested if Trocheck misses any time, as winger Nino Niederreiter has already been ruled doubtful to play in the series.

Trocheck enjoyed a bounce-back regular season, finishing second on the Canes with 43 points in 47 games. His 0.91 points per game tied a personal best. He entered Tuesday with two goals and one assist in seven playoff appearances.

Copyright © 2021 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Let the whiteout commence ... sort of.

The Winnipeg Jets will allow 500 fully vaccinated healthcare workers to attend Games 1 and 2 of their second-round series against the Montreal Canadiens.

This will mark the first Jets game at MTS Place with fans since March 9, 2020 - before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Toronto Maple Leafs did something similar, allowing 550 fully vaccinated healthcare workers at Scotiabank Arena for Game 7 against the Habs on Monday.

The Canadiens will likely host five times the number of fans as the Jets when the series shifts back to Montreal. The Quebec government allowed 2,500 fans for Game 6 against the Leafs. It was the first time that fans had attended an NHL contest in Canada since the pandemic began.

Copyright © 2021 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Carey Price reminded everyone Monday why he's still in the conversation for best goalie in the world.

The Montreal Canadiens goaltender stopped 30 of 31 shots during a spectacular performance in Game 7 against the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was less than two minutes away from a shutout before William Nylander beat him with a meaningless tally after Montreal already scored an empty-netter en route to a 3-1 win.

Habs forward Brendan Gallagher, who scored the opening goal in Game 7, was highly complimentary toward his netminder.

"We gave him one goal, it was almost like we knew it was going to be enough," Gallagher said postgame, per Sportsnet.

"It's a different level of confidence when you know Price is back there - especially in these elimination games," Gallagher added. "He's the best I've ever seen."

Price is now 22-10 with a 2.00 goals-against average, .929 save percentage, and three shutouts when facing elimination across all competitions, including international play, in his career, per Sportsnet. He's also 7-2 with a 1.54 goals-against average, .944 save percentage, and two shutouts in winner-take-all games.

However, since 2017-18, he owns a pedestrian .909 save percentage and minus-7.7 goals saved above average in the regular season. Yet, time and time again, he's proven to step up big when it matters most. He recorded a .936 save percentage during last year's playoffs and a .931 mark in the first round against Toronto this year.

The media asked Price postgame if this is the best hockey he's ever played, but he calmly deflected the question, just as he did to most of Toronto's shots in the series.

"That was our best game of the series," the 2015 Vezina Trophy winner said.

Price will go toe-to-toe with the reigning Vezina winner Connor Hellebuyck in what could be a goaltender's duel for the ages when the Canadiens take on the Winnipeg Jets in Round 2.

Copyright © 2021 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Carey Price turned in a marquee performance when it mattered most, stopping 30 shots to help the underdog Montreal Canadiens upset the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 in Game 7 on Monday.

Montreal came all the way back from a 3-1 series deficit. They never trailed after Game 4.

Brendan Gallagher opened the scoring for Montreal 3:02 into the second period, beating Jack Campbell five-hole following a Mitch Marner turnover. Corey Perry added some insurance later in the frame, redirecting a point shot on the power play with his knee.

Toronto didn't score until after Tyler Toffoli had already buried the empty-netter to seal the series.

The Habs will face the Winnipeg Jets in Round 2. The winner will take on the victor between the Colorado Avalanche and Vegas Golden Knights, which means the winner of the East Final will battle the winner of the Central Final in Round 3.

The Maple Leafs still haven't won a playoff series since 2004. They've now lost in the opening round in five straight years dating back to 2017.

Copyright © 2021 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Game 1 between the Colorado Avalanche and Vegas Golden Knights got ugly.

In the third period, with Vegas getting blown out, enforcer Ryan Reaves received a match penalty for attempting to injure Avs blue-liner Ryan Graves. A match penalty, rather than a game misconduct, means Reaves is suspended indefinitely until the commissioner rules on the issue.

Graves was bloodied and stayed down on the ice before getting back on his feet.

Reaves may have been seeking retribution after Graves knocked Mattias Janmark out of the game earlier in the contest with a massive hit.

Graves was dealt a two-minute minor for interference for the hit. Golden Knights head coach Peter DeBoer said postgame that the hit was "dirty," according to Fox's Vince Sapienza.

Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog took issue with Reaves' mindset.

"Reaves, he's on a mission to hurt somebody there in the third," Landeskog said postgame. "That's what he goes out and does."

Reaves received an additional two minutes for roughing for his part in the brouhaha. His teammates Jonathan Marchessault, Alex Pietrangelo, and Zach Whitecloud all received 10-minute misconducts. Brandon Saad and Valeri Nichushkin were handed 10-minute misconducts for the Avs.

Colorado ended up receiving a unique nine-minute power play. The Avs scored one goal with it in what ended up being a dominant 7-1 rout. The match finished with a total of 76 penalty minutes.

Game 2 is set for Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET.

Copyright © 2021 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Vegas Golden Knights netminder Robin Lehner is between the pipes for Game 1 against the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday, per The Athletic's Jesse Granger.

Marc-Andre Fleury played all seven games of Vegas' first-round series versus the Minnesota Wild, posting a 1.71 goals-against average and .931 save percentage.

The switch to Lehner appears to be a coach's decision as Fleury isn't known to be battling any injuries.

Lehner posted a 2.29 goals-against average and .913 save percentage in 19 regular-season contests this campaign. His last outing was on March 10 against the Avalanche.

Vegas rotated its goalies every other game during the regular season when both were healthy. The duo shared the William M. Jennings Trophy for allowing the fewest goals in the league.

Copyright © 2021 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Minnesota Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin played just 1:56 in the first period of Friday's Game 7 against the Vegas Golden Knights before departing with an apparent injury.

Brodin was slow getting up after Nicolas Roy hit him hard into the boards early in the contest.

The 27-year-old had a career year offensively with 23 points in 53 games, but he's regarded as one of the best defensive defensemen in the league.

Copyright © 2021 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.