San Jose Sharks forward Joachim Blichfeld was assessed a match penalty and ejected from Thursday's game after delivering a hit to the head of Colorado Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon in the third period.

MacKinnon, 25, stayed down on the ice momentarily before team medical staff escorted him to the dressing room. He didn't return for the remaining 12 minutes of the game.

Colorado head coach Jared Bednar provided a partial update on MacKinnon postgame.

"He seems to be doing good. I think that we got lucky on it," Bednar said. "Hopefully he's feeling good and everything tomorrow, but as of right now he seems to be fine."

Colorado led 2-0 at the time of the hit and scored a goal on the ensuing five-minute power play, and went on to win 4-0. MacKinnon had one assist in 18:05 of ice time before exiting.

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Boston Bruins netminder Tuukka Rask felt it was unfortunate there were no fans present Wednesday to pay tribute to Washington Capitals defenseman Zdeno Chara, who returned to Boston as an opposing player for the first time since 2006.

"That's half the tribute is when the fans are there and they're cheering. I believe he would've gotten a pretty long standing ovation," Rask said postgame, courtesy of NBC Sports Boston. "We lived those moments together. It's odd to see him on the other side, but I think, personally, for me, it wasn't as emotional as it would've been if there were fans in the stands."

The Bruins honored their ex-captain with a touching video tribute during a TV timeout.

Players tapped their sticks and Chara gave some waves of appreciation, but the thunderous applause from a packed house at TD Garden was absent.

The Capitals managed to grind out a 2-1 win in a shootout. Washington head coach Peter Laviolette, who notched his 650th career NHL victory in the process, believes Chara's return helped motivate his teammates.

"Guys played hard tonight," Laviolette said, according to The Washington Post's Samantha Pell. "It was an important game coming back to Boston for Z, important for our team just where we sit, but important for that reason as well. Guys knew that. I'm really happy for him that we were able to come in and help (Chara) out and get a win."

Chara, 43, served as Boston's captain for all of his 14 seasons with the club. He helped lead the Bruins to a Stanley Cup win in 2011 and the finals in 2013 and 2019.

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The Minnesota Wild are sending a message to a longtime fixture of the franchise.

Zach Parise will be a healthy scratch against the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday night for the first time in his tenure with the Wild, and only the second time during his 16-year career, according to The Athletic's Michael Russo.

Parise skated Wednesday, but he didn't take part in line rushes.

"Not going to get into details, but we as an organization and staff make a decision each night and we've made the decision to go with the lineup that we're going with," said Wild head coach Dean Evason. "It's a group decision, and Zach's out here tonight.

"You hope you go forward when something like this happens and hope you can turn it into a positive," the bench boss added.

Parise didn't go off for a line change with Nico Sturm and Marcus Foligno late in Minnesota's overtime loss to Vegas on Monday night, instead remaining on for 1:33 of ice time. During that extended shift, he deflected Golden Knights forward Max Pacioretty's pass right to Mark Stone, who fed Alex Tuch for the tying goal with about 42 seconds left in regulation.

Parise's role has gradually diminished throughout the season. He began the campaign on the team's top line, but the forward has since been demoted to the bottom six.

The 36-year-old has collected only three goals and six assists over 19 games in 2021. The veteran's average ice time of 16:38 is the lowest since his rookie season in 2005-06.

Parise was last made a healthy scratch on Nov. 30, 2005 while with the New Jersey Devils, according to NHL.com's Tom Gulitti. The last time he missed a game while not injured or ill was April 7, 2018 when Parise sat out the final contest of the Wild's regular season to rest for the playoffs, according to the Star-Tribune's Sarah McLellan.

He's been an alternate captain since joining the Wild in 2012, and only new captain Jared Spurgeon carries a larger cap hit than the $7.5 million both Parise and defenseman Ryan Suter carry.

Parise ranks third on the Wild's all-time goals and points lists, and sits seventh in games played despite spending his first seven seasons with the Devils.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs are getting some significant pieces back on Wednesday as they look to complete a three-game sweep of the Edmonton Oilers.

Star pivot Auston Matthews and No. 1 goaltender Frederik Andersen will return to the lineup, head coach Sheldon Keefe said, according to TSN's Mark Masters.

Matthews missed the team's last two games with a wrist injury, an ailment he's played through for most of the campaign. He appeared to aggravate the issue last week against the Calgary Flames while crashing into the boards. The 23-year-old still leads the NHL with 18 goals.

Andersen hasn't played since Feb. 20 against the Montreal Canadiens due to a lower-body injury. Michael Hutchinson and Jack Campbell held down the fort, going 3-1-0 with only four goals against. Andersen owns a .905 save percentage and a 2.69 goals-against average over 16 games this season.

Here is Toronto's projected lineup, with Alexander Barabanov coming out for Matthews.

Keefe also added that Campbell, who missed Monday's game after aggravating a leg injury that held him out of action for over a month, could back up Andersen on Wednesday. If he can't play, Hutchinson will dress.

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Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin revamped his coaching staff last week, firing head coach Claude Julien and associate Kirk Muller while promoting assistant Dominique Ducharme to interim bench boss. Goalie coach Stephane Waite initially appeared to be safe, but Bergevin wasn't done tinkering.

Waite was informed during the second intermission of Tuesday's game against the Ottawa Senators that he was being let go, Bergevin said Wednesday, according to The Athletic's Arpon Basu.

"This decision was not based only on this season," Bergevin said. "I had seen a bit of a pattern."

Starting netminder Carey Price has struggled this season. Even after stopping 26 of 27 shots Tuesday night, his .893 save percentage and 2.96 goals-against average are both worse than the league average. Price's $10.5-million cap hit makes him the NHL's highest-paid goalie, and there's still an additional five years left on his contract.

Bergevin insisted the 33-year-old remains elite and might just need a different voice in the form of new director of goaltending Sean Burke.

"Carey is still an excellent goalie, one of the best in the league, but he needs help," Bergevin said.

The Canadiens hired Burke as a scout in 2016, but he'll need to quarantine for 14 days before he can join the team. Bergevin believes Burke's experience going through the "ups and downs" through his 18 years as an NHL goaltender will help Price.

Bergevin added he did not consult Price before making the change.

"The day I decide to do that, it will mean I'm not the right guy for the job," he said.

Bergevin didn't dive into what Burke's role will entail or whether there will be a goaltending department in the future similar to the Florida Panthers' recent innovative approach. Burke's contract still expires at the end of the season.

Waite had been Montreal's goalie coach since 2013-14, meaning he oversaw Price's career year in 2014-15 when he won the Vezina and Hart trophies.

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Something's got to give in the negotiations between the Carolina Hurricanes and Dougie Hamilton.

The two sides have held discussions about a new contract for the pending unrestricted free-agent defenseman, but the talks have simmered since February and there's "a tangible gap" between what Hamilton's camp and the team are looking for, reports The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun.

Hamilton would be the best blue-liner available if he were to hit the open market when eligible July 28.

The 27-year-old is in the final season of the six-year, $34.5-million pact he inked with the Calgary Flames in 2015. Calgary traded him to the Hurricanes in a deal that sent rearguard Noah Hanifin and forward Elias Lindholm out west in 2018.

Hamilton has thrived since joining Carolina, forming one of the NHL's top pairings alongside Jaccob Slavin and posting 0.6 points per game with stellar underlying numbers over two-plus campaigns.

The 6-foot-6 defender has posted one goal and 13 assists while averaging over 22 minutes of ice time in 22 games this season.

Carolina is expected to have more than $28 million in cap space for 2021-22, according to CapFriendly.

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