Winnipeg Jets captain Blake Wheeler wasn't pleased Saturday when a reporter raised questions about the team's leadership group.

With the Jets enduring a rocky 2021-22 season, Jeff Hamilton of The Winnipeg Free Press asked Wheeler how much responsibility for the team's outlook falls on the players who wear letters on their sweaters.

"Well, I guess that's the real joy of being in that position. When things go good, nobody says a word about you, and when things go bad, it's your fault," Wheeler responded. "So I'm comfortable if you need to write a negative story, you can write it about me. No different than in the past. I think the fact that I'm still here talking to you instead of doing something else speaks volumes."

Hamilton replied by asking Wheeler if he feels he hasn't garnered enough praise during his time in Winnipeg.

"I was just being a little bit sarcastic," Wheeler said.

He added: "I mean, are you looking to get into a pissing match, you and I?"

The Jets currently sit sixth in the Central Division with a 22-21-9 record. They're in the midst of a four-game losing streak and have just five wins in their last 18 contests.

Longtime head coach Paul Maurice abruptly stepped down from his role in December, leaving Dave Lowry to take over in the interim. Maurice said at the time that the club needed a new voice and that he knew he needed to resign.

Wheeler, 35, started the season with just seven points in his first 17 games but is now up to six goals and 34 points in 38 games.

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New York Islanders star Mathew Barzal and veteran defenseman Zdeno Chara both exited Saturday's 5-2 loss to the Los Angeles Kings with injuries.

Head coach Barry Trotz didn't have much of an update on the duo's status after the game, but said Barzal has a lower-body injury while Chara is dealing with an upper-body ailment, according to The Athletic's Kevin Kurz.

Barzal got tangled up with Kings forward Phillip Danault along the boards in the Kings' zone midway through the second period with his ankle appearing to get caught underneath him. The 24-year-old seemed to initially have trouble putting weight on his left leg and had to be helped off the ice.

Barzal returned for a shift but he ultimately left the game and didn't come back for the third period.

Chara was also missing from the Islanders' bench in the final frame. He went to the locker room shortly after hitting Kings forward Blake Lizotte midway through the second period.

Heading into Saturday's matchup, Barzal led all Islanders skaters with 36 points in 44 games. Chara, meanwhile, recently set the NHL record for games played by defenseman.

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Wayne Gretzky believes the international hockey world should make a statement against Russia in response to the nation's ongoing invasion of Ukraine, a conflict the Great One called a "senseless war."

"I think international hockey should say, 'We're not gonna let them play in the world junior hockey tournament,'" Gretzky said during NHL on TNT on Saturday night. "I think we gotta, as Canadians, take that stance since the games are going to be played in Edmonton."

The 2022 World Junior Championship initially kicked off in December but was canceled during the round-robin stage due to COVID-19. Organizers rescheduled the tournament to mid-August, with Alberta staying on as the host.

Gretzky pointed to the Polish men's soccer team's actions as inspiration. Poland announced Saturday that it intends to boycott its World Cup playoff against Russia on March 24 in protest of the invasion.

"We wish everybody in the Ukraine all our best and our thoughts and prayers are with them," Gretzky said.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs appeared to be in cruise control Saturday night against the Detroit Red Wings, opening the third period with a commanding 7-2 lead.

Then, chaos ensued.

The Red Wings swiftly potted four unanswered goals in the opening 5:21 of the closing frame, and breathless back-and-forth action saw the final score read 10-7 in favor of Toronto.

"I don't even know if I can really put it into words," superstar Auston Matthews said, according to The Leafs Nation's David Alter.

"I've never played a game like that, I don't think in junior and youth hockey. It was pretty crazy, the whole period, right? Obviously not a position or situation we'd like to be in. But I think just the way that we responded when shit hit the fan and some big goals to get our lead back and stuff like that. I don't really have words for that third."

Linemate Michael Bunting, who had five points in the win, had similar feelings.

"It was crazy," Bunting said, according to Sportsnet's Luke Fox. "It wasn't that fun to be a part of because we were getting scored on, and then it was fun again. It was up and down emotions."

Saturday's high-octane clash featured the most goals in a single game since the Philadelphia Flyers and Winnipeg Jets combined for 17 in October 2011, per NHL Public Relations.

The outing also marked the first time the Maple Leafs recorded 10 goals in a contest without a power-play tally since 1947 and their first time hitting double digits outright since 2007.

Each pulled their netminders as the pucks continuously poured in, and the Red Wings yanked both Alex Nedeljkovic and Thomas Greiss at different points. The 17 goals scored on 4.8 expected between the two teams marks the worst combined goalie performance since the NHL began event tracking in 2007, according to MoneyPuck.

Despite the theatrics and near monumental collapse, Toronto head coach Sheldon Keefe is focused on the positives from the opening 40 minutes.

"I thought we played an excellent game," he said. "I mean, let's not let the craziness of the third period take away from the fact that we played an excellent game. Even in the third period with all of that nonsense."

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Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin shared his thoughts on Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

"Obviously, it's a hard situation. I have lots of friends in Russia and Ukraine, and it's hard to see the war," Ovechkin told reporters after practice Friday. "I hope soon it's going to be over, and there's going to be peace in the whole world."

He added: "Please, no more war. It doesn't matter who is in the war - Russia, Ukraine, different countries - I think we live in a world, like, we have to live in peace and a great world."

Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in the early hours of Thursday morning. Missile strikes have reportedly hit several areas throughout Ukraine, and Russian troops have been deployed on the ground, prompting thousands of Ukrainians to flee the country.

The 36-year-old has been an outspoken supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin throughout his career. His Instagram profile picture features him standing alongside Putin, and he has posted several pictures with him in the past.

When asked if he still supports Putin amid the ongoing crisis, Ovechkin - a Moscow native - said the following:

"Well, he's my president. But how I said, I'm not in politics. I'm an athlete, and you know how I said, I hope everything is going to be done soon. It's a hard situation right now for both sides and everything. Everything I hope is going to end. I'm not (in) control of this situation."

Ovechkin joins tennis players Andrey Rublev and Daniil Medvedev as Russian athletes that have called for peace.

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