Maurice: Scheifele hit was 'heavy' but clean

Winnipeg Jets head coach Paul Maurice defended Mark Scheifele on Thursday after the star earned a hearing with the NHL's Department of Player Safety for charging Montreal Canadiens forward Jake Evans.

"You need to do everything you can to stop a goal from being scored. It was a heavy, heavy hit for sure, but it was clean," Maurice said, according to The Athletic's Murat Ates.

Maurice added that Scheifele didn't leave his feet or lead with his elbow, and that Evans' head wasn't the target of the impact.

Scheifele skated nearly the entire length of the ice and steamrolled Evans as he tucked a goal into Winnipeg's empty net late in the third period of Game 1 on Wednesday night. Evans was stretchered off the ice and is sidelined indefinitely with a concussion.

Scheifele's hearing isn't in-person, meaning he can be suspended for a maximum of five games. He's never faced supplemental discipline to this point in his NHL career.

Game 2 goes Friday night.

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