The Carolina Hurricanes will get starting goaltender Petr Mrazek back for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Boston Bruins.

Mrazek exited with a lower-body injury in the second period of Game 2 against the New York Islanders in Round 2 and has not played since.

The 27-year-old netminder has played a critical role in the Hurricanes' surprise postseason run, posting a 5-3 record with a 2.22 goals against average, a .913 save percentage, and two shutouts.

Veteran netminder Curtis McElhinney stepped up in a big way in Mrazek's absence, closing out Game 2 against New York and picking up two more wins en route to Carolina's four-game sweep of the Islanders.

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It was a night that St. Louis Blues forward Pat Maroon will never forget.

The St.Louis, Miss., native scored the winning goal in double over time of Game 7 against the Dallas Stars in front of friends and family to propel the Blues into the Western Conference Final for the second time in four seasons.

"The biggest goal of my career, what a moment it's been," Maroon told Sportsnet after the game.

"It's been an emotional rollercoaster for me all year, and to score a big goal like that in front of my home town, my son in the stands tonight, fiance, friends and family," said Maroon.

Maroon's 10-year-old son, Anthony, watched from the seats as his father delivered one of the biggest goals in the franchise's 51-year history. Following the contest, Anthony was given a chance to share his thoughts on the big moment.

"I was looking at the page with all the players, where they’re from and all that stuff," Anthony said according to The Athletic's Jeremy Rutherford. "All I heard was everybody scream. My friend turns around and says, ‘It’s your dad!’ I just started crying.”

"I may have taught him a thing or two," the youngster joked according to NHL.com's Mike Zeisberger.

The 31-year-old signed a one-year, $1.75-million contract with the Blues on July 10 after receiving little interest from other teams around the league. Just 10 months later, Maroon is the hero in the city he grew up in.

"I saw my son - he was crying," Maroon said according to NHL.com's Lou Korac. "I saw him and I pointed to him. I’m proud. I’m proud to be from St. Louis and I’m proud to put that jersey on every night and I’m proud to work hard in front of these fans and to work hard for these guys that deserve it in here."

The Blues will face either the San Jose Sharks or Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Final starting later this week.

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Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy was handed a one-game ban on Tuesday for his hit to the head of Columbus Blue Jackets forward Josh Anderson in Game 6, the NHL Department of Player Safety announced.

McAvoy will be unavailable for the Bruins in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday.

McAvoy was handed a two-minute minor for the illegal check to the head on the play. Anderson was shaken up after the second-period hit but stayed in Monday's contest. The Blue Jackets went on to lose the game and series.

The 21-year-old sophomore has been the backbone of a strong Bruins' blue line this postseason, logging a team-high 322 minutes - 26 more than any of his teammates - and mostly against the opponent's top talents.

Playing in his second NHL season, this is the first time McAvoy has faced supplemental discipline.

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Dallas Stars netminder Ben Bishop appears to have avoided injury after taking a hard slap shot up high from St. Louis Blues defenseman Colton Parayko in Game 6 on Sunday, according to head coach Jim Montgomery.

"He's fine. Stayed in the game. He's fine. We just wanted to put Doby (Anton Khudobin) in. He wasn't hurt, that's why we made the switch," Montgomery said after the game, per The Athletic's Jim Rutherford.

The play occurred around the 7:37 mark of the third period. Blues forward Jaden Schwartz took advantage of the situation, depositing the puck with Bishop down to make it 3-1. The Stars netminder allowed a fourth goal to Sammy Blais 33 seconds later before exiting the contest.

The play sparked controversy as fans and media believed the sequence could've been whistled dead. Referee series supervisor Kay Whitmore provided answers following the contest.

"Not in this situation," Whitmore said, according to The Athletic's Sean Shapiro. "The scoring chance is imminent and it happened bang-bang and the puck's in the net. It wasn't a long duration of time. But the rule is pretty clear that in that situation they're not going to kill it (the play).

"As soon as his team would have gotten possession, they would have killed it immediately," he continued. "That happens all the time. But in this situation, they didn't deem it serious enough to kill it immediately and they didn't get possession before the puck went in the net. It's pretty clear how that rule works."

The two teams will meet in a series-deciding Game 7 on Tuesday in St. Louis with a trip to the Western Conference Final on the line.

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The Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook opened its 2020 Stanley Cup betting on Saturday and the Tampa Bay Lightning are favored, even after the eighth-seeded Columbus Blue Jackets swept them in the first round this season.

The Lightning boast league-best 6-1 odds to capture the cup in 2019-20, while the Blue Jackets didn't make the top 10 despite their surprising postseason run.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are the favorites among Canadian teams, and the Ottawa Senators are extreme underdogs.

The Colorado Avalanche and St. Louis Blues are included in the top 10 after topping off strong regular-season finishes with convincing playoff performances.

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Former NHL defenseman John Erskine was severely injured in a highway accident early Wednesday morning, his former agent, Pat Morris, confirmed to TSN's Rick Westhead.

According to the Ontario Provincial Police, a collision occurred at 12:48 a.m. Wednesday morning on Highway 401 near the town of Napanee, Ont., after a pickup truck collided with a transport truck while driving the wrong way in the eastbound lanes.

Morris said his former client is hospitalized with severe injuries but did not have any further information.

Police arrested the driver of the pickup truck, a 38-year-old man from Elginburg, Ont., at the scene of the collision. He was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, according to the OPP. The driver of the transport truck was not injured.

An investigation into the accident continues and charges have not yet been laid, OPP spokeswoman Const. Shannon Cork told Westhead on Thursday.

A second-round pick of the Dallas Stars in 1998, Erskine played 491 NHL contests split between the Stars, New York Islanders, and Washington Capitals. The Kingston, Ont., native last played in the league in April 2014.

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More than 200 of the world's top female hockey players have agreed to boycott North American professional leagues for the 2019-2020 season in an effort to alter the direction of women's hockey and push for a sustainable professional league.

"We will not play in any professional leagues in North America this season until we get the resources that professional hockey demands and deserves," read a prepared statement published Thursday morning.

The group of players includes U.S. national team star Hilary Knight and Canadian icon Marie-Philip Poulin.

"We cannot make a sustainable living playing in the current state of the professional game. Having no health insurance and making as low as $2,000 a season means players can't adequately train and prepare to play at the highest level," the statement adds.

"It's time for a long-term, viable professional league that will showcase the greatest product of women's professional hockey in the world."

The NWHL is the only remaining professional women's league. The Canadian Women's Hockey League folded March 31 after 12 years of operation.

"The thought of not playing in a pro league is daunting and nerve-racking," said Knight, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie. "But we firmly believe we're doing the right thing for our sport and that when we do play, we will do so in a league that embodies the values of our game.

"We can see where our game is now and where it has to be in order to be sustainable in the long term."

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has repeatedly stated the NHL will not involve itself in the operations of the NWHL. The NHL previously gave $50,000 annually to both the CWHL and the NWHL, upping its NWHL contribution to $100,000 after the CWHL ceased operations.

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Kelly McCrimmon is reportedly no longer in the mix to become the Edmonton Oilers' new general manager and will remain with the Vegas Golden Knights, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie.

The Oilers reportedly requested permission to interview McCrimmon in April once the Golden Knights completed their end-of-season procedures.

McCrimmon was hired by Vegas in 2016 as assistant general manager and has been with the club since.

Mark Hunter, Sean Burke, and Keith Gretzky are apparently the remaining candidates for the Edmonton position, reports TSN's Darren Dreger. Gretzky has acted as interim general manager since the Oilers fired Peter Chiarelli in January.

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Vancouver Canucks owner Francesco Aquilini took to social media on Tuesday to shut down reports that he reached out to former president and general manager Mike Gillis about potentially returning to the club.

The Vancouver Sun's Ed Willes reported on the "White Towel" podcast last Thursday that Aqulilini reached out to Gillis via text message.

Gillis was fired by Aquilini in April 2014 and was succeeded by former Canucks captain Trevor Linden, who was hired as president of hockey operations. Vancouver then brought in current general manager, Jim Benning, in May 2014.

The Canucks enjoyed one of their most successful eras under Gillis, making the playoffs in five straight seasons while earning two Presidents' Trophies and a trip to the Stanley Cup Final in 2011.

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Boston Bruins super-pest Brad Marchand is up to his old tricks against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Marchand's antics began in Game 1 of the second-round series when he appeared to intentionally stomp on and break the stick of Blue Jackets forward Cam Atkinson during an overtime faceoff.

Asked about the play, Marchand replied in typical tongue-in-cheek fashion.

"I think he was trying to dull my blade there," Marchand said, according to Conor Ryan of Boston Sports Journal. "Send me to the room, get it sharpened. It's kind of rude of him to do."

The 29-year-old Atkinson is well aware of the pesky Bruin's intentions and isn't getting caught up in his tactics.

"Hey, if that's how he wants to roll," Atkinson said, according to NHL.com's Dan Rosen. "I don't know, that's who he is. I'm not going to let it get to me. It is what it is."

The goal-scorer even made light of the situation.

"He owes me $300," Atkinson said, according to TSN's Frank Seravalli. "I'm expecting that. Cash. Straight cash."

Marchand's shenanigans continued off the ice when he directed comments at former teammate Riley Nash, whose big hit on David Krejci forced the Bruins center to leave the game.

"I don't think he had a hit in two years with us," Marchand said Friday, according to Matt Kalman of WEEI. "So obviously everybody's bought into their system and the way they play."

The Bruins won the opening tilt 3-2 in overtime on Charlie Coyle's fifth goal of the postseason. Game 2 is set for Saturday night at TD Garden in Boston.

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