‘No timeline’ yet for Charlie McAvoy’s return after Bruins defenseman took puck to face

It wasn't a pretty scene after Charlie McAvoy took a slap shot to the face and was forced to leave Saturday's game at Montreal. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff

The Bruins are still awaiting word on defenseman Charlie McAvoy’s status after he took a slap shot to the mouth on Saturday night.

Speaking after Monday’s morning skate, Bruins coach Marco Sturm confirmed that McAvoy won’t play against the Hurricanes at TD Garden — with the skilled defenseman still meeting with doctors to determine the next course of action in his recovery.

“He’s with the doctors right now, so there’s no timeline,” Sturm said of McAvoy. “Obviously, he’s going to be out tonight, and we’ll see how he [does] today with all his appointments.”

Sturm added that he’s not sure yet if McAvoy will require surgery to repair any damage he suffered.

The 27-year-old defenseman was hit during the second period of the Bruins’ 3-2 win over the Canadiens at Bell Centre. At 11:01 in the middle frame, McAvoy took a slap shot from Canadiens defenseman Noah Dobson directly in the mouth while out on the penalty kill.

Charlie McAvoy leaves the the game after taking a puck to the face pic.twitter.com/QlsNdINYoD

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McAvoy immediately hit the ice, with blood pouring from his face. Head athletic trainer Dustin Stuck rushed from the bench to assist McAvoy, covering his face with a towel. McAvoy eventually made his way off the ice, with teammate Nikita Zadorov searching for a few of McAvoy’s teeth out on the ice.

“For me personally, it was tough going back out there,” said Bruins winger David Pastrnak Saturday night. “But once the puck dropped, you focus on the play. You keep thinking about Chucky and hope he’s going to be alright. Obviously praying for him.”

Sturm noted after the win that McAvoy was still undergoing testing and the team was hoping that their alternate captain was going to be cleared to travel back with Boston with the rest of his teammates late Saturday night.

According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, McAvoy did receive the green light to travel back to Boston that night, but it’s clear that the talented defenseman still has a ways to go before getting cleared for game action once again.

McAvoy has dealt with his fair share of injury misfortunes over the years, with Bell Centre in particular being a house of horrors for the gifted blueliner.

During the 4 Nations Faceoff tournament in February, McAvoy injured his shoulder while playing for Team USA — with the injury and subsequent infection requiring a stay at Massachusetts General Hospital, an irrigation and debridement procedure, and a steady dose of antibiotics.

McAvoy did not play again last season after the 4 Nations Faceoff, appearing in just 50 games.

He was in the midst of a bounce-back season so far, recording 14 assists over 19 games while averaging 23:46 of ice time per contest.

His chemistry on a top pairing with Zadorov has helped steady the team’s defensive structure, with the Bruins outscoring opponents, 5-2, in the duo’s 132 minutes of 5-on-5 so far this year, according to National StatTrick.

With McAvoy sidelined, the Bruins will slot Henri Jokiharju with Zadorov on the top pair, while Mason Lohrei and Jonathan Aspirot will remain in place on the third pairing.

McAvoy was not the only Bruins regular who left Montreal with an injury, as top-six winger Viktor Arvidsson also had to exit Saturday’s game with a lower-body injury, and he was placed on injured reserve just ahead of Monday’s morning skate.

The 32-year-old winger appeared to tweak something while trying to chase after a puck in the third period, with Sturm noting on Monday that Arvidsson is “week to week” moving forward.

In response, the Bruins announced that forwards Matej Blumel and Riley Tufte were recalled from Providence.

In order to accommodate those AHL call-ups, Casey Mittelstadt was also placed on injured reserve alongside Arvidsson, while defenseman Jordan Harris was put on long-term injured reserve after undergoing ankle surgery in October. Later Monday, Johnny Beecher was put on waivers looking to assign him to Providence.

During morning skate, Blumel skated at right wing on a line with Pavel Zacha and Alex Steeves, while Tufte rounded out a fourth line with Sean Kuraly and Mikey Eyssimont. Blumel also skated on Boston’s top power-play unit.

Blumel, who led the AHL with 39 goals last season with the Texas Stars, has 2-11–13 numbers in Providence, while Tufte was leading the 12-2 P-Bruins with 8-8–16 stats.

Arvidsson stands as a tough loss, as the speedy forward had seemingly found his footing over the last few weeks. He scored six goals and nine points over his last 13 games, while his skating ability was a welcome addition on a Bruins power play that was able to gain clean entries over the blue line when the Swede had the puck on his stick.

Another player of note Monday morning was center Elias Lindholm, who has been out since Oct. 30 but was in a regular practice sweater and even took part in a few drills.

Even though Lindholm won’t play against Carolina, Sturm said that there’s a chance the veteran center could join the team at some point on their upcoming West Coast trip — although those details still need to be finalized.