Regardless of which team you're a fan of, anyone who watched the Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Montreal Canadiens game on Thursday night is feeling for John Tavares and his family right now after a brutal injury that left the Leafs captain drifting in and out of consciousness before being carried off of the ice on a gurney.

My thoughts this morning are only with John Tavares and his family. #LeafsForever #Tavares

— Seb (@seb_c_17) May 21, 2021

Though run-ins, fist fights and all types of injuries are par for the course in Canada's national winter sport, the incident that led to Tavares being transported to hospital last night was a freak accident that was admittedly far more difficult to watch than others.

No matter who your a fan of tonight every one should be a fan of a safe a speedy recovery of John Tavares 🙏🏻🙏🏻💙 pic.twitter.com/rzz677NLJr

— Stephen Christinzio (@SChristinzio) May 21, 2021

About 10 minutes into the first period of the first game of round 1, the star player was checked by Habs defenseman Ben Chiarot and fell to the ground in a pretty standard encounter.

But then, he was inadvertently kneed directly in the head by Montreal's Cory Perry, who was travelling down the ice, eyes on the puck, at a speed fast enough to send him flying after contact.

This is one of the nastiest collisions I have seen in a while. Hope Tavares is ok. #LeafsForever #MTLvsTOR pic.twitter.com/SXhL1ikDQm

— Holy Schmidt! (@YYCguy7) May 21, 2021

The series of unfortunate events happened in extremely quick succession, with viewers perhaps not realizing at first how serious the hit was.

But when a clearly dazed Tavares failed to get up — or move much at all — after a few seconds, it became obvious that the injury was severe.

Nous sommes troublés par le terrible accident impliquant John Tavares et lui envoyons nos meilleures pensées.

We'd like to express our concern for John Tavares and are sending him our best wishes for a speedy recovery.

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) May 21, 2021

Medics arrived on the ice and quickly strapped the 30-year-old to a gurney and wheeled him off the ice as his team members surrounded him and Perry gave him an encouraging pat on the leg.

He responded with a thumbs up, which fans were relieved to see, to say the least.

My nephew plays for Montreal but it doesn’t matter who’s who, you never want to see anyone get seriously injured. Praying for a speedy recovery for Tavares. 🙏

— Lori Edmundson Giampa🇨🇦 (@LoriGiampa41) May 21, 2021

Naturally, there has been an outpouring of support online, with hockey fans of all stripes putting aside their team loyalties to wish him a speedy recovery (at least, for the most part).

As a Habs fan I am disgusted by these moronic reactions. I wish nothing but a healthy, speedy recovery for Tavares. This is beyond a rivalry. This is beyond hockey. This is about being concerned for a fellow human being.

— Paul Papadopoulos (@tvpappy) May 21, 2021

According to reports, Tavares was conscious and "communicating well" after the hit, and underwent an array of medical tests, which all came back clear.

An update on @MapleLeafs captain John Tavares. pic.twitter.com/sV0dlfpdI8

— Leafs PR (@LeafsPR) May 21, 2021

He spent the night at a hospital in Toronto and was discharged on Friday morning.

I cant see that Tavares injury one more time. Particularly the trainer moving him around. Literally makes me sick to my stomach. Best wishes to him and his family. Good to hear that hes seemingly doing well at the hospital.

— Low Quality Bruins Fan (@BruinsLow) May 21, 2021

The ordeal also led to a scuffle between Perry and Toronto's Nick Foligno before play resumed and the Canadiens won 2-1.