NHL

Celine Dion's heart will go on for her hometown Canadiens ... 'cause the pop superstar says that pic of her in Vegas Golden Knights gear is a big, fat phony!!!

A photo of the Quebec native decked out in a VGK uniform popped up on the T-Mobile Arena jumbotron ahead of Game 5 of the Conference Finals on Tuesday ... with many wondering if Dion had actually ditched her roots for Sin City.

Of course, home teams love to do this in games -- showing fake pics of their opponents' most famous supporters rocking their threads really gets the fans riled up.

While the image clearly appears to be altered, Dion felt the need to set the record straight on Thursday ... saying, "By the way, I have nothing to do with this photo ... And you know what photo I'm talking about!"

It wouldn't be that farfetched to think Dion is a Golden Knights fan -- after all, her massively successful residency is in Vegas ... and she HAS been spotted wearing their jersey in the past.

But, as the Habs and Knights are set to face off in a heated Game 6, Dion had to make sure her team knew who she'd be rooting for.

Silly?? Yes. But, did you REALLY think we were gonna pass up on getting a Celine Dion sports crossover?!

The Habs are one win from making the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1993 ... so you could say it's all coming back to (them) now.

Winnipeg Jets superstar Mark Scheifele says his family is being targeted by angry fans upset with his cheap shot hit on Jake Evans ... and he's begging for them to stop.

Scheifele just received a 4-game suspension for taking out the Montreal Canadiens forward in Game 1 of their playoff series earlier this week.

The hit knocked Evans unconscious -- and was widely condemned by hockey fans and players alike who say Scheifele viciously targeted a defenseless player in a compromised position.

On Friday morning, Scheifele finally spoke to the media about the suspension -- saying he will NOT appeal the 4-game ban because he does not want to be a distraction to his team.

But, he also revealed his family has been harassed non-stop since the Wednesday incident ... and he's very upset about it.

"I'm a big boy. I signed up for this. I can handle this," Scheifele said ... "But, to put my parents, brother and sister, my loved ones through this, is unacceptable."

He continued, "I got held accountable. But, there's no right to go after my parents and my loved ones."

Scheifele says he's praying for Evans -- and hopes he can make a full and speedy recovery.

Evans suffered a concussion on the play -- and so far no update on when he's expected to return.

Canadiens player Jake Evans was forced to leave the ice on a stretcher Wednesday after a violent hit ... and his teammates are now calling the play both "dirty" and "disgusting."

The incident all went down late in the third period of Game 1 of Montreal's playoff series with Winnipeg ... when Evans scored a wraparound, empty-net goal.

Immediately after the puck crossed the red line, though, he was demolished by Jets player Mark Scheifele ... and Evans hit the ice HARD.

You can see in footage of the play, Evans landed face first ... and laid motionless on the ice while Canadiens players raced in to defend him.

While Montreal coach Dominique Ducharme said Evans did NOT need a trip to the hospital, Ducharme did say Evans still needed to undergo further evaluation after the Canadians' 5-3 win.

And, Evans' teammates were NOT happy about any of it ... even though Scheifele was hit with a penalty and ejected.

Forward Jesperi Kotkaniemi told reporters after the game the hit was "disgusting" ... while defenseman Joel Edmundson called it a "dirty" move.

"If he gets back in the series," Edmundson said of Scheifele, "we're going to make his life miserable."

Incredible scene during Maple Leafs' workouts Thursday ... John Tavares was back on the ice just 1 week after severely injuring his head -- and he looked GOOD!!!

Tavares took a flying knee to the face last Thursday ... and the damage was so bad, the 30-year-old Toronto captain had to spend the night in the hospital.

But, great news, Tavares is already back on the ice ... reporters shot video of the dude skating around the Toronto rink Thursday morning as if nothing had happened!!

Check out the clip, Tavares appeared to be moving just fine ... ripping slap shots and weaving around the ice no problem.

According to TSN's Kristen Shilton, Tavares' on-ice work lasted about 20 minutes ... before he eventually headed back into the locker room.

It's unclear if this means a return to actual gameplay is nearing for Tavares ... last week, the Leafs said in a statement John would be out "indefinitely."

The stands at the Nashville Predators game Sunday looked more like a frat party -- at least for a few seconds -- 'cause cameras caught Taylor Lewan chugging beers like he was in college ... and it awesome!!

The Tennessee Titans star made an appearance at Game 4 of Nashville's playoff series with Carolina ... and it didn't take long for the guy to lose his mind pumping up the crowd.

When the 29-year-old was introduced on the jumbotron, he played it cool at first -- waving with his daughter in his arms ... but a short time later, his shirt was off and beers were down the hatch!!

Check out the footage ... the Preds showed flashback video of Lewan previously going crazy at a game in 2018 -- so he did his best to one-up the show, and damn near delivered!!

Lewan chugged one beer ... and then ripped off his shirt. Seconds later, he chugged another -- and the crowd lost its mind!!

Even Predators star Ryan Johansen got a kick out of it -- laughing while staring at the insanity!!

The Preds used the energy and went on to win the game 4-3 in double overtime ... and said afterward Lewan is now required to be at every game going forward.

"HEY @TaylorLewan77," the team tweeted, "ITS MANDATORY YOU COME TO EVERY SINGLE GAME FOR NOW ON THANKS."

As for Lewan, he seemed pumped about it all ... but admitted his family wasn't too pleased with the beer spillage.

"Had a long car ride home of wynne telling me it 'wasn’t nice' to get her and mommy wet," Lewan said.

He added, though, "worth it."

VERY scary moment on the NHL ice Thursday night ... Toronto Maple Leafs star John Tavares took a flying knee to the face -- and needed a stretcher to leave the rink.

The terrifying moment all went down in the 1st period of the Leafs' playoff tilt vs. the Montreal Canadians ... when Corey Perry accidentally slammed his knee into Tavares' head.

The play was violent ... you can see as Tavares was going down to the ice, his face collided HARD with Perry -- who was in a full sprint.

The ensuing moments were horrifying, because as trainers tried to tend to Tavares -- his body went limp and fell backward.

The 30-year-old -- who's in the middle of a 7-year, $77 MILLION contract with Toronto -- ultimately was strapped to a stretcher and taken to the hospital for further evaluation.

Leafs' coach, Sheldon Keefe, provided some good news on Tavares after the game, saying his star player was "conscious and communicating well" and adding that initial tests had "come back clear."

"I've experienced a lot of different things, a lot of tough injuries like that in my time,'' Keefe said. "In an empty building like that, it's probably the most uncomfortable situation I've been a part of on the ice."

"It was really tough to get through."

Tavares -- the Leafs' captain -- is considered one of the best players in the NHL ... he's tallied 364 career goals and 455 career assists in his 12 seasons in the league.

Get well soon, John.

Chicago Blackhawks announcer Pat Foley was forced to issue a mea culpa on-air Monday night ... just minutes after he made a crass remark about suicide.

The scene all went down during the broadcast of Chicago's game against the Dallas Stars ... when Foley was trying to make a joke about the Blackhawks' grueling travel schedule amid the NHL's COVID-19 restrictions and regulations.

“Had I been traveling with the team this year," Foley said mid-broadcast, "I might have put a bullet in my head."

Yeah, not great.

The backlash to the comments was swift ... viewers weighed in all over social media, trashing Foley for the comments -- and it didn't take long for the play-by-play man to issue an apology.

"I wish I didn’t say that," said Foley, who's been broadcasting Blackhawks games since the early 1980s. "I'm sorry if I offended some folks. Apparently I did, so I apologize."

This is not the first time Foley's had to walk back some insensitive comments ... back in 2019 during a Blackhawks exhibition game, he famously tried to make a joke about a player with an ethnic last name.

"Ortega, who sounds like he ought to be a shortstop," said Foley, who issued an apology after those remarks as well.

History was made on the NHL ice Monday night ... the Tampa Bay Lightning started an all-Black line, and it's believed to be the first time an NHL team has EVER done that.

Daniel Walcott, Gemel Smith and Mathieu Joseph -- who are all Black -- started at the center and wing spots for TB in their game against the Panthers ... and the scene was awesome.

The trio logged a ton of ice time -- all 3 dudes played over 10 minutes each in the contest -- and they were praised by the Lightning broadcast team for their efforts in the game.

"There's another look at Daniel Walcott, playing with Mathieu Joseph and Gemel Smith," Lightning play-by-play man Dave Randorf said in the 2nd period.

"First time ever in NHL history they have started an all-Black line in this league. A big, historic moment tonight for sure."

Walcott and Smith aren't regulars on the Lightning roster -- Smith has played sparingly this season and Walcott was playing in his 1st-ever NHL game -- but Mathieu was SUPER fired up to have gotten the start with the guys nonetheless.

"Honestly, it was pretty awesome," Joseph said ... adding, "I think it’s a step in the right direction and obviously you got to thank the coaching staff for that, it was their call."

"But, it was definitely fun to have some progress and clearly it's a process over this, but seeing that, and I don’t know if it was the first, but I think it was great to see and I’m glad I was part of it."

The Lightning wasn't able to get the win -- they dropped the contest 4-0 ... though Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper was certainly pleased with his starting group's effort.

"They deserve to be here and have worked their tails off," the coach said of the three. "To have them all together, they had a little chemistry. Moving forward in the league, you hope it isn't a story anymore and will be the norm. It was a pretty cool moment for all those guys."

Added Walcott, "Coop did something really special here to promote this for young kids."

Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson says his attack on Rangers players earlier this week was completely justified ... insisting all he was trying to do was defend his goalie.

The 27-year-old explained the situation in his first meeting with media members since Monday night's drama ... saying New York players started it all when they messed with Caps goaltender Vitek Vanecek.

"Their guy goes to our net and kicks at our goalie and goes in there with his stick," Wilson said.

"At a young age in hockey, you’re taught to stand up for your goalie, so that’s what I was doing."

Wilson then explained he violently took down Rangers star Artemi Panarin because he claims the dude just straight up jumped on his back in an aggressive way.

"I think anybody’s first reaction would try to be just to throw them off you and wrestle them down to the ice," Wilson said. "And, that’s what I thought about it at the time."

Wilson added he believed it all to be a "fairly routine hockey scrum."

Seemed the NHL agreed, 'cause Wilson was NOT suspended and was only hit with a $5,000 fine ... which enraged the Rangers, who called the punishment complete B.S.

In fact, they were so upset with it ... when the two teams met again on Wednesday night, NY players could not stop going after the Capitals -- inciting brawls seconds after the puck dropped.

The two teams fought so much, Wilson was ultimately forced out of the game due to injury.

Wilson -- who appeared to be contrite about the whole situation at his news conference Friday -- did say he personally reached out to Panarin after the incident, and is glad he's doing better.

The Rangers, meanwhile, paid a $250,000 fine for blasting the NHL's head of player safety, George Parros, in a scathing statement after Wilson's punishment was announced.

Wayne Gretzky is not only The Great One on the ice ... but clearly off of it too -- 'cause the NHL legend made a fan's life by re-autographing a baby shoe, and the story is awesome.

Back in 1986, a little boy and his mother ran into Gretzky -- but they had one problem ... they had no hockey memorabilia for Wayne to sign.

So, Mom thought quickly on her feet, handed over her little boy's Nike shoe ... and Gretzky gladly slapped his John Hancock on it.

The piece actually came out pretty cool ... it's a baby shoe with Wayne Gretzky's signature on it!!

But, after 30-plus years ... the signature faded, and the boy who had kept it all that time was heartbroken.

So much so, he says he tried EVERYTHING he could to get in touch with Gretzky to have him re-sign the shoe.

Fortunately, after years of reaching out, he posted his story on a Facebook group's page ... and the guys at Upper Deck eventually caught wind of it and decided to lend a helping hand.

They were able to ultimately get the shoe back in front of Gretzky ... and, after explaining to him the story of it all -- the hockey legend gladly signed it again!!

The piece is now truly incredible ... Gretzky wrote "1/1" on it alongside his signature -- and Upper Deck authenticated it and sent it back to the fan, who couldn't have been more grateful.

"I can't thank everyone enough that helped get this done," the fan said. "This shoe will remain in my Family forever. If I thought it was priceless before, it has now become even more priceless if that’s possible."

Ya had to see this one coming -- the New York Rangers have just been slapped with a MASSIVE fine by the NHL ... after the team went scorched earth on a league exec. earlier this week.

Remember, the Rangers were FURIOUS with the league after Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson was handed a measly $5,000 fine for his violent altercation with N.Y. star Artemi Panarin.

The team released a lengthy statement slamming the NHL's head of player safety, George Parros, saying he was "unfit" to serve the position ... and Wilson should have been suspended indefinitely.

Of course, the NHL didn't take kindly to the statement ... handing down a severe $250,000 fine to the organization on Thursday.

Commish Gary Bettman spoke about the punishment minutes ago ... saying, "Public comments of the nature issued by the Rangers that were personal in nature and demeaning of a League executive will not be tolerated."

"While we don’t expect our Clubs to agree with every decision rendered by the Department of Player Safety, the extent to which the Rangers expressed their disagreement was unacceptable.

He added ... "It is terribly unfair to question George Parros' professionalism and dedication to his role and the Department of Player Safety."

Both teams are still dealing with the chaotic fallout from Monday's incident -- the Caps vs. Rangers game on Wednesday started off with a line brawl ... and there were at least 6 total fights in the 1st period alone.

Forget the hockey game, the Rangers vs. Capitals matchup turned into "MMA on Ice" on Wednesday ... in the wake of a violent incident earlier this week.

The chaos started as soon as the puck dropped ... with several players attacking each other as retaliation for what happened on Monday between Capitals forward Tom Wilson and Rangers superstar Artemi Panarin.

The line brawl broke out one second into the game ... with at least 3 separate scraps going down.

The mayhem continued as Wilson entered the game ... with Rangers defenseman Brendan Smith going after him as soon as he touched the puck. Wilson later left the game with an undisclosed upper-body injury.

Overall, there were more than 100 penalty minutes assigned stemming from 6 fights within the first 5 minutes of the game at Madison Square Garden.

As we previously reported, the Rangers were LIVID with the NHL for handing just a $5,000 fine to Wilson for his brawl with Panarin, which left the Rangers star with a season-ending lower-body injury.

The Rangers claimed Head of Player Safety, George Parros, was unfit for his job in a scathing statement on Tuesday ... and called Wilson's involvement a "horrifying act of violence."

Capitals winger Tom Wilson body slammed Artemi Panarin in the middle of their game on Monday ... rag-dolling the Rangers star on the ice -- and now, EVERYONE's pissed over it.

The wild scene all went down in Madison Square Garden ... wherein the 2nd period of the Washington vs. New York tilt, all hell broke loose near the Capitals' crease.

As a pile built up around the goal mount, 27-year-old Wilson jumped on Rangers star Pavel Buchnevich ... and then slid in a dirty punch that pissed off NY players.

As the Rangers rushed to Pavel's defense ... Wilson fought back hard -- and went to work on throwing Panarin all over the ice.

You can see in footage of the melee, Wilson body slammed the Rangers' 29-year-old goal scorer not once, but TWICE ... and it was violent.

Fortunately, it seems Panarin escaped the fracas without serious injury ... but the NHL world was sent into a frenzy over Wilson's actions regardless.

Despite Wilson receiving 10-minute misconduct ... many on social media called for more severe punishments from the league -- with Rangers coach David Quinn ripping the guy for his actions after the game.

"We all saw it," Quinn said. "There are lines that can't be crossed in this game."

He added, "You got one of the star players in this league now that could have gotten seriously, seriously hurt in that incident ... You all saw what happened, and it happens time and time again with him. Totally unnecessary."

Wilson ended up with the last laugh ... the Caps player not only flexed on the Rangers from the penalty box -- but he helped Washington win the game, 6-3, scoring an empty-net goal late in the contest.

Heartbreaking news coming out of the NHL on Tuesday morning … T.J. Oshie’s father, known as "Coach Oshie," has died after a long battle with Alzheimer’s.

The Washington Capitals star made the announcement on his Twitter page ... revealing Tim Oshie -- who had been fighting Alzheimer's since at least 2012 -- passed away this week at 56 years old.

"It's with a heavy heart today that my family mourns the passing of my Dad 'Coach Oshie,'" 34-year-old T.J. said. "Coach lived life to the fullest and was unanimously loved by everyone who met him."

"Thanks to all the family and friends for their support. Heaven received a legend today. #RIPCoachOsh."

T.J.'s father had a HUGE role in the hockey superstar's life ... he was T.J.'s first coach -- and the Caps' winger clearly loved him dearly.

In fact, T.J. talking about his dad after winning the cup in 2018 is still one of the most heartwarming moments in NHL history.

You'll recall ... while his teammates were marching the Stanley Cup around the arena, T.J. got emotional on television broadcasts.

"My dad's here in the crowd," T.J. said of Tim. "He was diagnosed with Alzheimer's and he doesn't remember a lot of stuff but you bet your ass he's going to remember this one."

T.J. did not play in the Capitals' game against the Rangers on Monday night ... with the team announcing the winger was out for personal reasons.

Kevan Miller was feeling VIOLENT on Tuesday -- the Boston Bruins player unleashed the fury all over multiple Buffalo Sabres players ... culminating with a KO in a mid-game fight!

The brutality began in the 2nd period when Miller came flying across the ice to smash Sabres' forward Rasmus Asplund into the boards at breakneck speed. Asplund went crumpling to the ground.

Asplund's teammates took issue with the shot because it looked like an illegal blindside hit -- even though it wasn't called for a penalty.

That's when Sabres' player Tage Thompson squared up with Miller looking to avenge Asplund ... but he quickly learned Miller was all about the smoke.

The gloves came off ... and Miller immediately opened up a can of whoop-ass all over Tage's face -- beating him down onto the ice in a one-sided mauling.

Eventually, the refs stepped in and put a stop to the fight when it became clear Thompson had no chance.

FYI, Miller is a very experienced fighter -- with 20 scraps under his belt since 2013.

Thompson, on the other hand, has only fought once in the NHL since joining the league a few years ago.

It's almost like Thompson didn't realize what he was getting himself into ...

As for the game, the Bruins ended up securing the "W" in an overtime shootout.