Chicago Blackhawks' Marian Hossa Hospitalized After Brutal Hit

Chicago Blackhawks star Marian Hossa was lifted off the ice on a stretcher Tuesday night after a brutal hit by Phoenix Coyotes' Raffi Torres.

Hossa was skating near the boards during the first period of Game 3 of the playoff series when Torres hit him with a vicious shoulder-to-face hit. The Blackhawks star, who led the team with 77 points this season, was immobilized and taken to a local hospital for tests, but was released Tuesday night.

After initial evaluation on the ice, (Hossa) was taken by ambulance to the hospital for further testing, which yielded encouraging results, team physician Dr. Michael Terry said in a statement. He has been released from the hospital and we are monitoring him closely at home.

The brutal hit didn't yield a penalty on Torres, who is known for some questionable hits. Torress not receiving a penalty for his hit on Hossa didn't sit well with Chicago.

''I saw exactly what happened,'' Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville told the Chicago Sun-Times. ''It was right in front of me. All four guys missed it. It was hard [to take]. The refereeing tonight was a disgrace.''

Blackhawks star Patrick Kane agreed, saying, It's tough. You saw the hit. It's just tough you don't get a power play out of it.

The Blackhawks went on to lose to the Coyotes in overtime, 3-2. Chicago's next game will be on Thursday at 8 p.m., but Hossa's status is uncertain.

''I think he's getting better by the minute, so it's good to know that,'' Jonathan Toews told reporters after the game. ''But we don't expect him back anytime soon. That was a scary thing to go through. We want to make sure he's 100 percent.''