Corey Perry felt ‘sick’ when he saw scary John Tavares collision

Montreal Canadiens wing Corey Perry said he felt “sick” when he saw Toronto Maple Leafs captain John Tavares stretchered off after a collision.

When John Tavares took a knee to the head and had to be stretchered off during the Maple Leafs and Canadiens first-round playoff matchup, it shook just about everyone who saw it.

Few had a more personal stake in it than Corey Perry, the Canadiens right wing who delivered the incidental blow.

“I honestly felt sick to my stomach when I saw it,” Perry said, per Emily Kaplan of ESPN.

Perry went on to call it “a scary situation” and said he would reach out to Tavares to talk.

“Hopefully, he’s OK,” he added.

Perry skated over to Tavares as he was stretchered off to pat him in support. It’s obvious the moment shook him.

Corey Perry was torn up over John Tavares’ injury

Even though it seemed pretty clear Perry did not intend to harm Tavares, he still faced retribution on the ice. Nick Foligno initiated a fight in defense of his captain. It was a challenge Perry accepted, but he didn’t throw a punch.

After the game, Perry addressed that moment too.

“I mean, it’s an accident. All [Foligno] said was, ‘let’s settle this now. I know it’s an accident,’ he said. But it’s their captain, so it is what it is,” Perry said, per Greg Wychynski of ESPN.

Tavares was taken to a local hospital, but his status is still unknown.

The Canadiens went on to win 2-1 to steal a home game from Toronto. They lead the series 1-0, with the next game scheduled for Saturday.

While both teams will certainly be hoping for Tavares to recover without incident, attention has to return to the ice, where the series will be decided eventually.