Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand left during the first period of Saturday's matchup against the Philadelphia Flyers following a hit from defenseman Ivan Provorov.
Marchand attempted to break out of the Bruins' defensive zone before he was met with the 6-foot-1 Provorov. Marchand, who stands at 5-foot-9, was sent to the ice and headed towards the Bruins locker room shortly after. Provorov received a two-minute penalty and called for an "illegal check to the head."
Provorov's hit on Brad Marchand pic.twitter.com/2CZCKwUI97
— Brandon Murphy (@2Murphy8) December 2, 2017
Bruins forward David Pastrnak took issue with the play and came to the defense of his teammate.
The matinee game between the Bruins and Flyers marked Marchand's second game since he returned from an injury. The initial injury forced the former All-Star to miss eight games for the Bruins this season.
In the midst his sophomore season with Philadelphia, Provorov has yet receive a punishment from the NHL's Department of Player Safety.
Marchand eventually returned for the second period, giving hope that the early departure was only precautionary. It turns out, the hit awakened the 29-year-old.
Marchand assisted on Pastrnak's goal that gave Boston a 2-0 lead. Over four minutes later, Marchand showed no complications from the hit. He struck the back of the net for his ninth goal of the season and extended the Bruins lead to 3-0.
Brad Marchand scores for #NHLBruins to make it 3-0. Can the #Flyers comeback? pic.twitter.com/OuLepLWZXH
— 🚨SiriusXM NHL Network🏒 (@SiriusXMNHL) December 2, 2017
Boston maintained the 3-0 lead as they defeated the Flyers.