Shot to the face sends John Carlson to hospital.

Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson probably didn't expect to be waking up in a hospital on Christmas Eve, but unfortunately that's exactly what happened to him this year.

On Friday night, Carlson was injured when he took a wicked shot to the face courtesy of Winnipeg Jets defenseman Brendan Dillon. The shot appeared to get away from Dillon and caught Carlson right in the face, resulting in enough damage to Carlson's face that it caused blood to immediately spurt out onto the ice.

The Capitals defenseman would, unsurprisingly, quickly make his way off the ice and would not return to the game, and we now know the reason for his continued absence. It sounds like Carlson may have been seriously hurt by the shot, enough so that he spent the night in hospital according to an official update released by the Capitals.

Here is the official statement from the team:

John Carlson was transported to a local hospital for further evaluation following his injury during the third period of Friday’s game vs. WPG. Carlson was discharged from the hospital earlier today and remains under the care of team medical personnel. He is out indefinitely.

As mentioned in the statement, Carlson is being listed out indefinitely. This likely means that even after the NHL's holiday break we can expect him to remain out of the lineup for some time.