Big hit on Patrik Laine leads to brawls between Jets, Sabres
— -- Winnipeg Jets right wing Patrik Laine took a hard hit Saturday from Buffalo Sabres defender Jake McCabe that left the Jets' leading scorer sprawled on the open ice.
After practice Sunday, Jets coach Paul Maurice told reporters that Laine has a concussion and there is no timetable for his return.
"Patty has got a concussion, tested out last night," Maurice said.?"He will start the stages of recovery with that. We'll wait until symptoms subside, and then you start increasing workload and get back on the ice.... there's no timeline."
Maurice went on to say he had no problems with the hit, stating it was hard but clean.
Laine, who was the NHL's rookie points leader entering Saturday, was escorted to the dressing room after he took the hit from McCabe 13 seconds after the Sabres tied the game 3-3 in the third period.
The Sabres overcame a two-goal deficit to win? 4-3.
Laine was looking down at the puck when McCabe hit him with his left shoulder. McCabe was not penalized for the hit. Laine appeared to hit the back of his head on the ice as he fell and was down for several minutes before being helped to his feet.
Winnipeg center Mark Scheifele immediately went after McCabe, leading to a brawl involving all of the skaters on the ice except Laine. Scheifele was penalized for roughing.
After the final horn, Sabres goalie Robin Lehner got involved in a six-on-six fight in front of the Buffalo net.
"I don't have a problem with the hit," Maurice said. "They hit heads. It was a straight-on hit."
Laine left KeyBank Center under his own power and was seen boarding the team bus afterward.
After the game, McCabe had a small cut under his eye, which he said came from the hit.
Sabres winger Brian Gionta, who scored Buffalo's third goal of the game, said the series of scrums fired up the team.
"It's a spark for us, but it also gets their team off their game," Gionta said. "They are running around trying to avenge the hit, obviously, to a big player on their team. That's where a lot of the momentum comes from."
ESPN's Craig Custance contributed to this report.?
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