Winnipeg Jets veteran winger Mathieu Perreault was livid upon hearing that Vancouver Canucks forward Jake Virtanen would not be disciplined for elbowing him up high Tuesday.

"Player safety, my ass," Perreault told the Winnipeg Sun's Ted Wyman following Thursday's practice. "This is literally an elbow to the face of a guy that didn't have the puck."

Virtanen wasn't suspended or fined by the head of the NHL Department of Player Safety George Parros, nor was he penalized by the on-ice official.

"I can't really protect myself if the league's not going to protect me," Perrault continued. "I'm the smallest guy (on) the ice so I can't really fight anybody. The only thing I can do to defend myself is use my stick, so the next guy that does that to me is gonna get my f------ stick. And I better not get suspended for it."

The 5-foot-10, 188-pound Perreault missed time with a concussion after taking a late hit from Joel Farabee in December. The Philadelphia Flyers rookie was suspended three games.

Perreault said he isn't concussed, but he told the Winnipeg Sun's Scott Billeck that his jaw is sore and he will probably struggle while eating the next couple of days.

Jets captain Blake Wheeler came to the defense of his teammate and tried to fight Virtanen, but Virtanen wanted no part of it, even though it would've taken a superior player off the ice.

"(Virtanen) doesn't want to fight anybody," Perreault said. "He's gonna throw his elbow around and he's not gonna fight anybody and the league's not gonna do anything about it. So maybe I should start running around with my elbows up and getting guys in the face and I won't have to answer and fight anybody, and I should be all right, right?"

Virtanen has dropped the mitts twice in his NHL career, both times during the 2015-16 season, according to hockeyfights.com.

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Edmonton Oilers fans and Calgary Flames faithful are trying to kill each other with kindness.

The Battle of Alberta fan bases responded to the latest case of bad blood between Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk and Oilers winger Zack Kassian by donating money to charities in their rival team's city.

The exchange began after Flames fan Mohamed Elsaghir started a GoFundMe page to have Tkachuk's face put on billboards in Edmonton. When Calgary radio station CJAY92 pledged to cover the cost of the billboards, the money raised from the fundraiser was instead donated to ALS research.

In response, Oilers supporter Samantha Costa decided to launch her own initiative, donating to a Calgary charity in Kassian's name so that "kids can get a proper meal and grow up to be tougher than Tkachuk."

Costa donated $25 to Brown Bagging for Calgary's Kids, a local charity that makes lunches for underprivileged children.

The movement was taken to the next level when local entrepreneur and Dragon’s Den star Brett Wilson got on board. Wilson pledged to match up to $10,000 of whatever Oilers fans raise by Friday at noon. He also said he'd give an additional $5,000 to an Edmonton shelter chosen by Costa.

Before 9 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Brown Bagging for Calgary's Kids announced $16,199 had been raised.

The Flames and Oilers are set to meet again Jan. 29 in Edmonton.

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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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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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Tyler Motte hopes his story can inspire others in need.

The Vancouver Canucks forward revealed he was diagnosed with anxiety and depression in an inspirational video posted by the team Wednesday.

Motte opened up about feeling "lower and lower" during his second pro season until he couldn't find the energy to get out of bed and to the rink. Growing frustrated by the way he was feeling, Motte took his girlfriend's advice and sought psychological help.

"It's not necessarily about telling my story," Motte said. "It's about to help that one person or those handful of people that need to know they're not alone in it."

The 24-year-old understands he's been given a unique platform as a professional athlete and is pushing to end the stigma surrounding mental health in sports.

"In sports and hockey there's this mindset that we've come to adapt to where it's all about being mentally strong and not showing weakness," Motte said.

He added, "For me, just accepting and saying out loud that I was diagnosed with depression and had a mental health issue, that was the first weight off my shoulders."

Hockey Talks is a mental health initiative that was launched in 2013 following the death of former NHL forward Rick Rypien, and Motte is optimistic about its potential to turn sport into a space where these important discussions can be facilitated.

"With the support of individuals, teams, communities, I think the stigma is going to shrink drastically. It'll turn it into an opportunity where people can come to fully understand what some people go through, and I think that's really the purpose of Hockey Talks."

The Canucks will host their seventh annual Hockey Talks game Thursday against the Arizona Coyotes.

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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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