Things got off to a heated start between the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday night.

Following a spirited fight in the first minute that saw Tom Wilson drop Jamie Oleksiak, captains Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin exchanged unpleasantries from their respective benches.

As NBC color commentator Pierre McGuire noted, Ovechkin asked Crosby to fight him in the exchange - oh wouldn't that be a sight.

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Edmonton Oilers forward Jujhar Khaira has been suspended two games for his cross-check on St. Louis Blues defenseman Vince Dunn, the NHL's Department of Player Safety announced on Wednesday.

The incident occurred midway through the third period of Tuesday's game. Khaira was assessed a five-minute major for cross-checking and a match penalty.

Earlier in the day, Dunn was fined $1,942.20 for his cross-check to Khaira in the same sequence.

Khaira will be eligible to return to the Oilers' lineup on Dec. 29 when the club hosts the San Jose Sharks. In 33 games this season, the 24-year-old has two goals and 11 assists.

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The Vegas Golden Knights placed forward Max Pacioretty on injured reserve Wednesday with an undisclosed injury, according to NHL.com's Danny Webster.

The designation is retroactive to Dec. 17 and means that Pacioretty will be out until at least next Monday. He will subsequently miss at least three games, including Saturday's contest that will see the Montreal Canadiens visit T-Mobile Arena.

Pacioretty will miss the opportunity to face his former team for the final time this season. Last month, he was held pointless in his return to Montreal, despite firing a season-high nine shots on goal.

The 30-year-old was forced from Monday's game against the Columbus Blue Jackets after appearing to suffer a lower-body injury on a play in the second period.

In 30 games this season, he has recorded 10 goals and 19 points.

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The Vegas Golden Knights and Columbus Blue Jackets exchanged blows both on and off the ice on Monday night.

During the second intermission, and with both teams locked in a 0-0 tie, the Blue Jackets looked for takers to play some board games.

The Golden Knights rose to the challenge.

Let the games begin!

It was a rather back-and-forth tilt until the Golden Knights backed the Blue Jackets into a point of no return.

With that, Vegas delivered the final blow.

The intermission shenanigans we're such a hit that both teams agreed to a rematch on Feb. 9, when the Golden Knights and Blue Jackets meet again.

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The Vegas Golden Knights and Columbus Blue Jackets exchanged blows both on and off the ice on Monday night.

During the second intermission, and with both teams locked in a 0-0 tie, the Blue Jackets looked for takers to play some board games.

The Golden Knights rose to the challenge.

Let the games begin!

It was a rather back-and-forth tilt until the Golden Knights backed the Blue Jackets into a point of no return.

With that, Vegas delivered the final blow.

The intermission shenanigans we're such a hit that both teams agreed to a rematch on Feb. 9, when the Golden Knights and Blue Jackets meet again.

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The Chicago Blackhawks placed goaltender Corey Crawford on injured reserve Monday.

The designation comes a day after the veteran netminder was forced from Sunday's game against the San Jose Sharks with a concussion.

In turn, the team recalled goaltender Collin Delia from the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League on an emergency basis.

While Crawford's timetable has yet to be determined, many fear the worst after the 33-year-old was sidelined for 10 months from last December to October due to a concussion.

In 23 games this season, Crawford has posted a 6-14-2 record with a .902 save percentage and a 3.28 goals-against average.

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Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford suffered a concussion after a collision during Sunday night's game against the San Jose Sharks, head coach Jeremy Colliton confirmed postgame, according to ChicagoBlackhawks.com's Chris Wescott.

Crawford was forced from Sunday's 7-3 loss late in the first period after Evander Kane shoved Dylan Strome into the veteran netminder after a failed scoring chance.

The 33-year-old missed the first five games of the season with a concussion he suffered last season. He previously hadn't played since Dec. 23, 2017.

"Crow is such a big part of our team," Connor Murphy said. "To lose him is not good. You just feel for him. In a game like that where there were parts where our goalie is hung out to dry and then for them to take guys crashing on him is not fair either."

Crawford's posted a 6-14-2 record with a 3.28 goals-against average and a .902 save percentage this season. His backup, Cam Ward, has recorded a 4.17 goals-against average and a .883 save percentage.

The news is another blow to a struggling Blackhawks club that sits with just 26 points on the season, the second-lowest total in the NHL.

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Nearly two weeks after formally being granted a franchise, the Seattle group has begun to compile a list of potential GM candidates, TSN's Pierre LeBrun reported during Thursday's "Insider Trading" segment.

"What I can tell you is the Seattle group has, over the past week or two here, finally started to put some names on a piece of paper as for GM candidates," LeBrun said. "Now they're not in a hurry, but I am told they have 10-12 names on paper. They're not going to reach out to candidates directly until those people, their seasons are over. They want to respect that so they'll wait until the offseason to reach out."

What is unsure at the moment is when the group will actually put pen to paper with a general manager. LeBrun notes that the team could look to put someone in charge as early as this summer or they could wait another year in the hope that another candidate becomes available.

Seattle can afford to take plenty of time to make their decision though, as they won't begin play until the 2021-22 season.

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St. Louis Blues captain Alex Pietrangelo underwent surgery on his right hand and will be re-evaluated around Christmas, general manager Doug Armstrong said, according to The Athletic's Jeremy Rutherford.

The 28-year-old suffered the injury on Nov. 30 against the Colorado Avalanche and was placed on injured reserve on Dec. 3.

Pietrangelo, much like the rest of his teammates, has gotten off to a slow start offensively, with just four goals and 11 points in 24 games. However, he had posted four points in the previous four games before exiting the Blues' lineup.

The Blues enter Thursday just two points out of last place in the Western Conference.

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Warning: Video contains graphic content

There was a scary moment in Boston on Tuesday night midway through the first period when Arizona Coyotes defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson's skate clipped Bruins forward David Backes in the face.

After dropping to his knees, Backes quickly collected himself and raced off the ice to the Bruins' dressing room.

Luckily, following some treatment during the first intermission, Backes returned for the second period.

The 34-year-old has recorded three goals and three assists in 26 games this season.

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