Brad Marchand responded Tuesday to heavy criticism from New Jersey's Marcus Johansson.

The Devils forward returned to practice Monday after missing more than two months of action due to a concussion suffered from a Marchand elbow to the head. He called the play sad, stupid, and not a hockey play.

Johansson also worries Marchand hasn't learned his lesson, and could end someone's career with a similar hit.

"He's entitled to his opinion," Marchand said Tuesday, per TSN. "I understand he's frustrated with the situation. I would be as well. I feel really bad about how things played out, but again, very happy to see that he's back out on the ice and hopefully he's playing soon."

Marchand was suspended five games for the play, marking the sixth time in his career he's been sidelined due to supplemental discipline.

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Vancouver Canucks defenseman Christopher Tanev has been shut down for the remainder of the season due to a sprained knee, head coach Travis Green announced Tuesday.

Tanev sat out Sunday night's 4-1 win over the Dallas Stars after suffering the injury in Friday's game against the St. Louis Blues.

The 28-year-old has dealt with injuries all season which have limited him to just 42 games, in which he's contributed two goals and 11 points.

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Hockey's most infamous beard almost fell prey to an errant high stick.

Winnipeg Jets winger Patrik Laine suffered a gash on his chin during Sunday's game against Nashville, but he made it clear the facial hair is there to stay.

"I let them know right away that I'm gonna keep it and don't touch it," he said, according to Ted Wyman of the Winnipeg Sun. "It was pretty much what they had to work with.

"I didn't stitch it up so I have no idea how they did that. But they are professionals and they did great work with it so they were able to save my beard. It was fantastic work."

Here's a look at what the beard looked like on opening night:

Here's a more recent look:

Laine has scored 43 goals in 75 games while developing this look.

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It's arguably the most important position in sports, so it should come as no surprise that San Jose Sharks head coach Pete DeBoer thinks goaltender Martin Jones deserves much of the credit for his team's eight-game winning streak.

"We wouldn't be where we're at and we sure wouldn't have an eight-game winning streak (without him)," DeBoer said, according to NHL.com's Tracey Myers. "He's been our best player a lot of nights here the last month and that's where it starts. When you get goaltending like that, you have the confidence to take a few more chances offensively, and it usually leads to a few more goals. He's been great."

On Monday night, the club rattled off its eighth straight win with a shootout victory over the Chicago Blackhawks. San Jose now sits comfortably in second in the Pacific Division.

The Sharks have earned six of their eight wins against non-playoff teams, so with games against the likes of the Nashville Predators and the Vegas Golden Knights on the horizon, DeBoer knows their upcoming road trip will be a real test.

"You look at our schedule, the opponents we have coming up are all quality, quality teams," DeBoer said. "We've done a good job of banking the points we should regardless of how it looks. It was an important two points to start this trip."

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Each NHL club's nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy was unveiled Tuesday.

The award is given out by the Professional Hockey Writers Association and recognizes the player "who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey."

This year's nominees include Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos, who returned with a vengeance after being limited to just 17 games last season with a knee injury. He's put up 86 points in 75 games - his most productive campaign since 2011-12, when he captured the Maurice Rocket Richard Trophy with 60 goals.

Among the other nominees is New Jersey Devils forward Brian Boyle, who was diagnosed with leukemia in September.

After missing the first month of the season, Boyle made a triumphant return to the lineup on Nov. 1. The 33-year-old was ultimately named an All-Star, replacing injured teammate Taylor Hall, and has posted 13 goals and 23 points in 62 games.

Here's the full list of nominees:

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Cory Schneider was expected to be the man in net when the New Jersey Devils made their return to the postseason.

Instead, as the team makes a push for a playoff spot, the goaltender finds himself on the bench. He hasn't won a game since Dec. 27 and has failed to recapture his high-end form since returning from an injury that kept him out for 16 games.

Based on the way Keith Kinkaid has been playing in his stead, not even Schneider can argue with the decision.

"At this time of the year, it's not about any one individual player, it's about the team and whatever is best for the team and Keith has been playing fantastic the last month and a half," Schneider said, according to Mike Morreale of NHL.com. "Even if I was playing well, Keith would give us a good decision to have in net one way or another."

Kinkaid's been dialed in this month, posting a record of 6-3-0 with a .931 save percentage. Meanwhile, the Devils sit in the second wild-card spot, one point up on the prowling Florida Panthers.

For his part, Schneider is doing his best to remain prepared if and when he's called upon.

"For me, it's about working hard, competing, and being ready when it's my turn," he said. "You look at the past two Stanley Cup championships by the Penguins, and they needed both guys (Matt Murray and Marc-Andre Fleury) down the stretch, so you never know what could happen."

Through 39 appearances this season, Schneider has posted a save percentage of .909, well below his career average of .920.

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Scoring big goals appears to be in the Selanne genes.

Leevi Selanne, son of Hall of Fame winger Teemu, scored the overtime winner for Santa Margarita Catholic High School on Monday to clinch the Division I title at the 2018 USA Hockey national championships.

Santa Margarita tied the game with two seconds remaining in regulation to push the game to overtime.

This was dad's reaction.

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Through the remainder of the regular season, we'll take a look at how the night's action impacts the playoff race, highlighting which teams' postseason odds went up or down significantly.

While the Vegas Golden Knights stole headlines by qualifying for the postseason in their inaugural campaign, there was some considerable changes in the odds for the bubble teams vying for playoff position.

The Florida Panthers and Los Angeles Kings each earned big wins, while the Colorado Avalanche - victims of the Golden Knights - took a substantial hit as the idle St. Louis Blues hold a game in hand down the stretch.

Here's a look at how things shape up after a nine-game slate Monday in the NHL.

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

To see percentages for the entire NHL, visit Sports Club Stats.

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Vegas is playoff bound.

With a 4-1 win on home ice over the Colorado Avalanche on Monday night, the Golden Knights punched their ticket to the postseason in their record-setting inaugural season.

The Golden Knights are the third team in league history to qualify for the playoffs in their debut campaign, joining the 1979-80 Hartford Whalers and Edmonton Oilers, per NHL Public Relations.

However, the Whalers and Oilers did so after joining from the World Hockey Association, making Vegas' accomplishments the first of its kind in the NHL.

Before the season begun, oddsmakers projected the Golden Knights to finish with a league-worst 69.5 points, but Monday's win pushed them to 103 on the season - ranking fourth in the league - with six games remaining.

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The San Jose Sharks are still the hottest team in the NHL.

Monday's 4-3 shootout victory over the Chicago Blackhawks gave the Sharks their eighth consecutive win.

The Sharks temporarily moved within four points of the Vegas Golden Knights for first place in the Pacific Division, but the expansion franchise later regained its six-point cushion and clinched a playoff berth with a win over the Colorado Avalanche.

San Jose hasn't lost since March 10, when they fell 2-0 to the Washington Capitals.

Extending the streak won't be easy, as the Sharks face the St. Louis Blues - winners of five straight themselves - in the second game of a road back-to-back Tuesday night.

San Jose then travels to Nashville to face the NHL-best Predators on Thursday night before clashing with the Golden Knights in Nevada on Saturday.

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