Referee Chris Rooney, widely considered to be one of the top officials in the NHL, was bloodied and had to leave Game 7 of the Florida-Toronto playoff matchup on Sunday night after taking an inadvertent stick to the face.

Referee Chris Rooney, who was hit in the face with a hockey stick during the Florida Panthers-Toronto Maple Leafs series, is doing well and hopes to return to work the NHL playoffs, a league source told UPI on Tuesday.

NHL referee Chris Rooney hopes to return to the Stanley Cup playoffs after suffering a black eye in a high stick accident during Game 7 between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida