Jets’ Laine diagnosed with bruised foot, out up to 2 weeks

The Winnipeg Jets have avoided a massive injury scare.

Star winger Patrik Laine was forced to leave Tuesday's game against Los Angeles during the second period after blocking a shot with his foot.

Upon further evaluation, the injury was deemed to be a bruise and not a broken bone, head coach Paul Maurice confirmed Thursday.

The Jets play Friday against Anaheim and Sunday against Nashville. Laine won't suit up against the Ducks and is unlikely to be available for the showdown with the Predators.

Laine was red-hot prior to the injury, recording 20 goals and five assists on a recent 15-game point streak.

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Blues’ Schenn avoids suspension for hit to head of Bruins’ Krejci

St. Louis Blues forward Brayden Schenn will not face supplemental discipline for a hit to the head of Boston Bruins forward David Krejci on Wednesday.

The NHL reviewed the incident and decided it was not an egregious case of charging, noting that Schenn's skates were on the ice at the point of contact, according to The Athletic's Jeremy Rutherford.

Furthermore, Schenn's contact with Krejci's head was deemed unavoidable due to the latter's positioning.

Schenn received a minor penalty for charging, and Krejci was not injured on the play.

The Department of Player Safety deliberated on the hit "quite a bit," according to NBC's Joe Haggerty.

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Matthews will play vs. Predators after month-long absence

Auston Matthews is back.

The Toronto Maple Leafs center will play Thursday in Nashville against the Predators, making his first appearance in a month after being sidelined since Feb. 22 with a shoulder injury.

Prior to the injury, Matthews recorded 28 goals and 22 assists through 53 games.

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Toews to miss at least 2 games with upper-body injury

Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews will miss a couple of games with an upper-body injury, head coach Joel Quenneville announced Thursday.

The news comes two days after the Blackhawks were officially eliminated from playoff contention.

Toews has appeared in all 74 games, contributing 20 goals and 32 assists.

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Crosby was ‘just trying to follow the bouncing puck’ on crazy goal

Sidney Crosby's career highlight reel is already one for the ages, and yet he still finds ways to wow.

The latest "how did he do that?" moment came in Wednesday's win over Montreal, wherein Crosby managed to juggle the puck on his stick in front of the net and bat it past none other than Carey Price.

True to form, Crosby was rather humble when talking about how he managed to pull it off.

"I was just trying to follow the bouncing puck," Crosby said, per Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "It worked out. It was nice to see one go in."

Watching from the other end of the ice, goalie Casey DeSmith's reaction was more typical of the average fan.

"That was jaw-dropping," DeSmith said. "That’s a world-class player making a world-class play. If that’s not No. 1 on SportsCenter, I don’t know what is. That was one of the cooler things I’ll see."

Don't worry Casey; they noticed.

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Bruins become 2nd Eastern Conference club to clinch playoff berth

The Boston Bruins joined the Tampa Bay Lightning as the only Eastern Conference teams to thus far clinch a spot in the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Boston's berth came after it earned a single point against the St. Louis Blues on Wednesday night.

The Bruins qualified for the postseason for the second straight year and for the ninth time in the last 11 years.

They earned their 100th point in the standings Wednesday night and improved to 45-17-10 through 72 contests. The Bruins sit second in the Atlantic Division behind the Lightning, who punched their ticket to the playoffs on Sunday night.

On Friday night, the league-leading Nashville Predators became the first team this season to secure a playoff spot.

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Linesman takes hit, later gets hand cut in Penguins-Canadiens game

Steve Miller had a tough night at the office.

The NHL linesman endured two separate scares in the second period Wednesday night, first getting run into at the blue line by Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jake Guentzel, and then getting his hand cut later in the frame.

Miller appeared to get cut by the skate of Charles Hudon as the Montreal Canadiens forward was jumping over the boards and coming off the ice, according to TSN's John Bartlett.

The official returned to the game in the third period with his right hand taped up, per The Athletic's Seth Rorabaugh.

Miller was a late add to Wednesday's game. One of the two originally scheduled linesmen, Jonny Murray, couldn't make it in time because of the heavy snow that has been falling in the Pittsburgh area.

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Blues’ Schenn levels Bruins’ Krejci with hit to head

Boston Bruins forward David Krejci was on the wrong end of a huge collision with St. Louis Blues forward Brayden Schenn Wednesday night.

Schenn was assessed a two-minute minor for charging on the play, but it's not beyond the realm of possibility that he could face further discipline for this headshot.

Krejci appeared to be okay, as he remained in the game.

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