Wayne Simmonds believes the fans who heckled Devante Smith-Pelly of the Washington Capitals with a racist chant in Chicago on Saturday night shouldn't be allowed to attend another NHL game.

On Sunday, the Philadelphia Flyers forward lamented the incident and suggested further punishment for the culprits in a reply to the Capitals' tweet sharing Smith-Pelly's response:

The fans repeatedly chanted "basketball" at Smith-Pelly while he was in the penalty box Saturday night during a game against the Blackhawks. They were later ejected.

Capitals head coach Barry Trotz showed support for Smith-Pelly afterwards, and said the chanting was "disgusting."

The Capitals, Blackhawks, and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman all condemned the incident in separate statements.

Simmonds, who like Smith-Pelly is black, has also endured racism during his career. While playing in the Czech Republic during the 2012-13 lockout, an opposing team was fined after its fans directed racist insults towards him, and a fan in London, Ont., was fined for throwing a banana at him during an exhibition game on Sept. 22, 2011.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Winnipeg Jets found themselves in seventh heaven once again Sunday night.

Blake Wheeler and Mathieu Perreault poured in three points apiece and Kyle Connor scored twice as the Jets pounded the Florida Panthers 7-2.

It was the fifth time this season Winnipeg scored seven goals in a game, and they've now done it in every month since the 2017-18 campaign began:

Amazingly, the Jets have only lost twice in the 29 games this season in which they've scored at least four goals.

Winnipeg entered Sunday's action ranked sixth in the NHL with 3.22 goals per game.

Patrik Laine, Mark Scheifele, Nikolaj Ehlers, and Bryan Little also scored for the Jets on Sunday night.

The win gave Winnipeg a two-point cushion over the Nashville Predators for first place in the Central Division, although the Predators still hold two games in hand.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Don't count Connor McDavid out of the Art Ross Trophy race.

The Edmonton Oilers are languishing near the bottom of the NHL standings, but it's not for a lack of production on the part of their franchise center.

McDavid recorded a hat trick in Sunday's win over the Colorado Avalanche, marking his third such feat of the season and his second this month alone.

As a result, his 2017-18 totals now stand at 26 goals and 43 assists, good for 69 points and a temporary share of second in the league scoring race.

He remains eight points behind Nikita Kucherov, but he's recorded 11 goals and four assists through nine games in February, good for a 1.67 point-per-game pace.

That's 0.5 points per game higher than his career average, but even if that recent pace falls off a bit, there's reason to believe he could challenge Kucherov, thereby salvaging this season on a personal level at least.

As it stands, McDavid is on pace for 98 points, two off his league-leading total from last season. Kucherov, however, is tracking toward 107 points of his own, so he'll be tough to catch.

But if anyone can make up that ground, it's McDavid, and even on a team destined for yet another lottery draft pick.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

An injury suffered by Michal Neuvirth during Sunday's game against the New York Rangers prompted Philadelphia head coach Dave Hakstoll to turn to rookie netminder Alex Lyon.

The 25-year-old stopped 25 of 26 shots in two periods of play to earn the win for the Flyers, and with Brian Elliott already on the shelf, he could be in line for full-time duty if Neuvirth is ruled out for any length of time.

"That could be the case. (Or) maybe they trade for two guys and I’m sent down to (the AHL) tomorrow," Lyon said after the win - his first - according to Sam Carchidi of Philly.com. "In professional hockey, in professional sports in general, you just don’t know.

"So I’m going to take confidence from that (victory). I’ve said it all along: I’m just taking it one day at a time and working as hard as I can. That’s the best approach."

Lyon, who went undrafted after excelling at Yale University, posted a record of 15-8-2 with a .911 save percentage in 26 games for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms this season.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Washington Capitals forward Devante Smith-Pelly responded to Saturday night's racially charged incident in Chicago when a group of fans were ejected for chanting "basketball" while he sat in the penalty box.

Smith-Pelly addressing the media Sunday and acknowledged it's unacceptable for black athletes to be dealing with acts of racism in 2018.

The Blackhawks, Capitals, and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman have also released statements condemning the occurrence.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

New Jersey Devils forward Miles Wood has been suspended two games for boarding Tampa Bay Lightning forward Vladislav Namestnikov on Saturday night, the Department of Player Safety announced.

Here's the play, which will result in the first suspension of Wood's career.

Wood was given two minor penalties on the play. He's eligible to return to the Devils' lineup Feb. 22 versus the Minnesota Wild.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

New Jersey Devils forward Miles Wood has been suspended two games for boarding Tampa Bay Lightning forward Vladislav Namestnikov on Saturday night, the Department of Player Safety announced.

Here's the play, which will result in the first suspension of Wood's career.

Wood was given two minor penalties on the play. He's eligible to return to the Devils' lineup Feb. 22 versus the Minnesota Wild.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.