Scheifele accepts suspension, hopes for the best for Evans

WINNIPEG - Just over 12 hours after his four-game suspension was announced by the National Hockey League's Department of Player Safety, Mark Scheifele had a chance to explain his side of the play they ruled on - a five-minute charging penalty and a game misconduct for a hit on Jake Evans in the final minute of regulation time in Game 1 against the Montreal Canadiens.
But that wasn't the first thing he wanted to discuss.
"I think first and foremost before we can talk about anything, the No. 1 thing is Jake Evans' health," Scheifele said. "I reached out to a couple of their guys and I hear he's doing well. He didn't have to go to the hospital, which is good news. First and foremost is his health and how he's doing. I pray for a quick and speedy recovery for him, and that he's OK."
One of the players Scheifele reached out to is Canadiens forward is Brendan Gallagher.
The two are friends and someone Scheifele says he has "tremendous" respect for.

Gallagher commented on the hit in a postgame interview mere minutes after Game 1, saying he felt Scheifele knew better, so Scheifele wanted to make sure the two of them had a conversation.
"I know the guys on their team know who I am, know the person I am and they know my intent. For Gally to say those words, especially in the media and even more importantly to me, it means a tremendous amount," Scheifele said. "I think a lot of the league knows the person I am, knows my heart. I think that's in the entire league."
One of those people that knows Scheifele really well is head coach Paul Maurice, who spoke to Scheifele a couple times since the end of Game 1.
"His first concern, genuinely, was for Jake Evans," said Maurice. "It's opposite of who he is as a player. But I also think he's an aware guy. He's not a guy that runs around the ice and bad things happen."
Maurice understands that the Department of Player Safety has every right to set a precedent for hits, especially when there is an injury involved. He said he had prepared himself for a two-game suspension in this case, but didn't expect four.
"Mark's got an entire career at the opposite end of that spectrum," said Maurice. "I think they had him for three hits in the Edmonton series and it was a hard-fought series. I don't know how many penalty minutes he had this year but it wouldn't be 20."
The 28-year-old Scheifele had 17 penalty minutes in the 56 games he played in 2020-21. He said his mindset on the play with under a minute left in Game 1 was to try and prevent a goal with the Jets trailing 4-3.
"I don't go in with a frame of mind of injuring a hockey player. My record precedes itself. I think I've had not one charging penalty in 600 games," said Scheifele. "My thought process there is cutting him off at the post, and I'm backchecking and my thought process the entire way is there's a minute left in the game, we just scored, it's a one-goal game.
"Obviously the result sucks that he's hurt. But like I said before, I just hope he's OK. I hope for a speedy recovery and I'm praying for him."

As far as the suspension goes, Scheifele said he accepts it and won't appeal. He may feel that four games is "excessive," but he doesn't want his situation to be a distraction - even if online backlash has become far too personal.
"I can accept the accountability. That's what you sign up for, being in the NHL. But the hate that my family has gotten. The bullying that they've gotten. Online, phone calls. It's pretty gross to see," said Scheifele, who took a couple seconds to collect himself.
"My parents are the salt of the Earth. For my parents to get hate like that, and my brother and sister, it's awful," he said. "I can handle it, I'm a grown man. I've accepted that and I can be held accountable for that. But for my family to get that, it hurts me a lot."
A text from his uncle helped reassure Scheifele.
"His mom would always tell him 'You're a good person and everyone that cares about you knows that. The people who don't know you, don't care what they ever think.' It made me smile this morning because I know the people that care about me, I know the people that love me, I know what they think of me and that's really helping me."
The Jets centre is keeping Evans in his thoughts as the days go on.
"For that result to happen hurts me, because I have tremendous respect for this league, I have tremendous respect for the players in this league and for my teammates and our opposing teammates," he said. "The biggest thing that sucks about it is the result."
Scheifele would be eligible to return in Game 6 of this series after his full suspension is served.
"I just want to be there cheering on my teammates. It's a big game tonight," he said. "From this point on, it's all about the Winnipeg Jets. It's not about me, it's not about anything like that. It's about the Winnipeg Jets and the guys in that room who are going to be battling for our team. That's about it."