NEW YORK -- Edmonton Oilers forward Alex Chiasson has been suspended for one game by the NHL for cross-checking Toronto Maple Leafs forward Jimmy Vesey.

The incident occurred at the end of Toronto's 3-0 win at Edmonton on Monday night. Chiasson was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct for cross-checking. Chiasson will forfeit $18,534 in salary.

The Maple Leafs and the Oilers will finish a three-game series Wednesday in Edmonton.

Toronto won the first two by a combined 7-0 score, and both games were played without the Maple Leafs leading scorer, Auston Matthews.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The list of players in the NHL's COVID-19 protocol dropped to a season-low three, despite the additions of Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby and Nashville's Ryan Johansen.

San Jose's Tomas Hertl is the only other player on the list after entering his seventh day in the protocol.

Arizona's John Hayden, Detroit's Patrik Nemeth and New York Rangers' Kaapo Kakko, who spent 12 days on the list, were all cleared Tuesday.

The protocol list has remained in single digits for each of the past nine days and is down from a season-high of 59 on Feb. 12.

In a related development, 17 of the NHL's 31 teams now have plans in place allowing a limited number of fans to attend home games after the Philadelphia Flyers announced they will begin doing so at 15% of their arena's capacity.

David Warner has conceded that he rushed back too soon during the Test series against India following the groin injury he suffered during the ODIs. Warner made himself available for the last two Tests in Sydney and Brisbane when he was clearly significantly hampered by the injury and it has since meant another lengthy rehab.

Speaking on commentary last week, Warner said how he expected to feel the effects of the injury for up to nine months but will make his return to action this week for New South Wales - firstly in the one-day competition before the Sheffield Shield against South Australia - and is confident he won't do any further damage.

"I made the call to play those Test matches, felt like I needed to be out there and help the guys," he told reporters at Sydney airport before flying to Adelaide. "Looking back in hindsight I probably wouldn't have done that, where I am with the injury it put me back a little bit.

"If I'm thinking about myself I probably would have said no, but I did what I felt was best for the team and me being out there opening the batting was I felt the best thing for the team."

Warner added that the injury, which involved a tear in the abdomen plus two in his groin, was "horrible" and that he'd "never felt anything like it" but the stint on the sidelines has allowed him to spend time with the family - although even what he was able to do with his children was restricted by the injury - and given him the chance to reflect on where his career stands.

Australia won't have any more Test cricket until late in the year, unless England win the final Test against India to allow them to sneak a World Test Championship final berth, but Warner still faces a busy period of white-ball action following this spell in domestic cricket for New South Wales.

He will head to the IPL in early April and after that Australia are scheduled for a white-ball tour of West Indies although this has yet to be confirmed. Warner recently secured a deal for the Hundred in England, which runs for a month from mid-July, then Australia are set to have tours of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh before the T20 World Cup in India in October which follows directly into the next home summer that includes a five-Test Ashes series.

Warner has previously spoken about potentially reevaluating his workload around the three formats but currently has his sights set on the 2023 50-over World Cup in India which follows back-to-back T20 World Cups - the second of which will be hosted in Australia in 2022 - and is eager to play as much Test cricket as possible.

"I'm not thinking about the end date at all, for me it's about the 2023 World Cup," he said. "We've got a good foundation with the white-ball team, we've got a good opportunity to play that and win in India. The core of the team with the age group it will probably be the last for a few of us. Then obviously it's a given that you have to call it time unless you are going to play to 41 - it's time for the new guys to come through.

"From a Test cricket point of view I'd love to play as long as I can. We've got a lot of cricket coming up in that context after this year so for me it's about staying fit and healthy and trying to manage my family time with cricket."

MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Vikings have released veteran tight end Kyle Rudolph after 10 seasons, the team announced on Tuesday.

The move saves Minnesota $5.1 million against the salary cap for 2021. Rudolph, 31, will become a free agent for the first time in his NFL career.

The former second-round draft pick of the Vikings in 2011 issued a heartfelt goodbye in a story published by The Players' Tribune reflecting on his 10 seasons in Minnesota.

"I got so lucky, because -- I didn't just get drafted by some team who 'had a need at tight end,' Rudolph wrote. "I didn't just get drafted as, like, the nameless, faceless '#1 tight end on the board.' I got drafted by a team that was all set in terms of need ... but then drafted me anyway.

"I'll always remember that: how the Minnesota Vikings wanted me -- and wanted to bet on my potential."

Vikings general manager Rick Spielman weighed in on Rudolph's release in a statement, calling him "one of the premier tight ends in the NFL and most influential and positive leaders I've ever been around."

"Kyle and [his wife] Jordan have made such an immeasurable impact on our team and community that may never be matched," Spielman said. "The energy they have invested in the community, most notably through the End Zone at the University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital, is truly remarkable. I admire Kyle and we will miss him and his family. We sincerely wish them the best."

Rudolph had three years remaining on the contract he signed in June 2019 after the Vikings approached him to restructure his deal via an extension. He was in danger of being a cap casualty this offseason with a $9.45 million cap hit and a role that has decreased considerably in the Vikings' offense over the past two seasons.

Rudolph spoke earlier this offseason about his desire for a bigger role in Minnesota's offense or elsewhere and said he would not be open to a restructure if the team approached him about taking a pay cut.

"I think I'm worth every dime of my contract," Rudolph said on the podcast "Unrestricted with Ben Leber" in January. "That doesn't mean that I'm used to my potential and I'm used to do what I do well, so it will be interesting over the next few months. Like I said, I have three years left on my contract. I don't want to go anywhere else. I've somehow become a pretty decent blocker because I've been forced to. It certainly wasn't something that I ever did well at any point of my career. Maybe in high school because I was bigger than everyone else, but even then, I just wanted to run around and catch balls."

Rudolph caught 28 passes on 35 targets in 2020, his lowest output since the 2014 season. He churned up 334 receiving yards and one touchdown, the latter of which was a career low for the former second-rounder.

At 31, Rudolph said he feels he has "a lot of good football left" and will have a chance to play for his second NFL team.

Rudolph's impact off the field was well documented throughout his time in Minnesota. The tight end's work with the Masonic Children's Hospital led to him being the Vikings' Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee three straight times from 2017-19.

Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins called Rudolph "the smartest player I'll ever play with" in a tweet that paid homage to his former teammate, who also drew praise from coach Mike Zimmer.

"Kyle has been a leader and mentor for us on and off the field from the first day I arrived in Minnesota," Zimmer said. "He has been such an important part of this team and community throughout his career and it has been an honor to coach him the last seven seasons. He will be missed, and we wish him and his family nothing but the best."

Creighton men's basketball coach Greg McDermott apologized Tuesday for racially insensitive comments he made to his players following a loss to Xavier last week.

"On February 27th, after an emotionally tough loss on the road, I addressed our student-athletes and staff in the postgame locker room and used a terribly inappropriate analogy in making a point about staying together as a team despite the loss," McDermott said in a statement released via Twitter. "Specifically, I said: 'Guys, we got to stick together. We need both feet in. I need everybody to stay on the plantation. I can't have anybody leave the plantation.'

"I immediately recognized my egregious mistake and quickly addressed my use of such insensitive words with my team. I have never used that analogy and it is not indicative of who I am as a person or as a coach. I am deeply sorry. I have apologized to our student-athletes and to our staff, as well as to President [Daniel] Hendrickson and Director of Athletics Bruce Rasmussen.

"Over the last 72 hours, I have engaged in multiple difficult conversations with student-athletes, staff, parents, and University administrators and I realize the pain that my words have caused. For that, I sincerely apologize. I am committed to ensure that this will never happen again and am using this as a learning experience. While there remains work to be done and trust to earn back, I appreciate our student-athletes' honesty and will maintain an open dialogue as we grow and learn together."

Creighton released a separate statement, calling the language McDermott used "deplorable" and "inconsistent with the university's values and commitment to creating a welcoming and inclusive environment."

"Coach McDermott acknowledged the impact of his words and apologized to his student-athletes, their families and his staff," the school said. "While an apology is a start, and while we believe this was out of character for Coach McDermott, in no way does it diminish the fact that his remark was hurtful to many and has absolutely no place in the Creighton community. We have offered our full and unconditional support to those affected by his words."

Creighton assistant coach Terrence Rencher issued a statement addressing McDermott's comments through Coaches For Action, a Big East group that tries to educate and bring awareness to players about social injustices. As part of the statement, Rencher said he was "deeply hurt" by McDermott's words and said his focus now is supporting the Bluejays players on any potential needs. He added that the team has opted to continue to chase its goals on the court this season with McDermott on the sideline.

Statement from Coach Rencher pic.twitter.com/nwk1MA1d8a

— Coaches For Action (@coaches4action) March 3, 2021

The loss at Xavier snapped a four-game winning streak for the No. 14 Bluejays (17-6 overall,13-5 Big East).

McDermott has been the head coach of Creighton since 2010. Before taking over the Bluejays, he spent a decade as head coach at Iowa State, Northern Iowa and North Dakota State.

LOS ANGELES -- Lakers center Marc Gasol has been ruled out against the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night because of the NBA's health and safety protocols, according to a team spokesperson.

Los Angeles is riding a two-game winning streak since the return of starting point guard Dennis Schroder, who had missed the Lakers' previous four games -- all of them losses -- while being sidelined because of a violation of the health and safety protocols because of contact tracing.

Gasol, 36, was signed to a two-year contract in the offseason to join the defending champions. He is averaging 4.8 points and 4.1 rebounds this season.

Gasol's absence could mean more playing time for center Damian Jones, who was recently signed to a 10-day contract and had eight points, three rebounds and two blocks in his debut with the team against Golden State. Jones is listed as probable for the Suns game with a lower back strain.

Golden State's Stephen Curry and Phoenix's Devin Booker have been 3-point champions at NBA All-Star Weekend before, and they'll try to win that trophy again Sunday.

The league revealed the 15 players Tuesday who will be taking part in the other on-court events besides the All-Star Game in Atlanta, with the overwhelming majority of them pulling double duty between those competitions and the game itself.

Curry, Booker, the Boston duo of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, Chicago's Zach LaVine and Utah's Donovan Mitchell -- all of them All-Stars -- will be the six competitors in the 3-point contest.

All-Stars Luka Doncic of Dallas, Domantas Sabonis of Indiana, Julius Randle of New York, Nikola Vucevic of Orlando and Chris Paul of Phoenix will be five of the six entrants in the skills competition. They'll be joined by Portland's Robert Covington, the only current NBA player who is a graduate of a historically Black college and university.

Covington went to Tennessee State. HBCUs will be a major part of All-Star night, and the league has previously announced that scholarship funds that will support Black students will receive an influx of at least $2.5 million from the events in Atlanta.

The only event that won't include any All-Stars is the dunk contest, which will feature first-time participants Anfernee Simons of Portland, Cassius Stanley of Indiana and Obi Toppin of New York.

The dunk contest will be two rounds and judged by five former champions: Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins, Dee Brown, Jason Richardson, Josh Smith and Spud Webb. It will be held at halftime of the All-Star Game, while the skills competition and 3-point contest will occur pregame.

Only 18 teams will have on-court representation at All-Star night, the number much lower than usual because of reasons such as the pandemic, the one-night nature of this event and the elimination of the Rising Stars game this season.

None of last season's individual event winners -- dunk champion Derrick Jones Jr., who was with Miami then and with Portland now, skills champion Bam Adebayo of Miami and 3-point champion Buddy Hield of Sacramento -- are returning to defend titles this season.

Atlanta, Charlotte, Cleveland, Detroit, Houston, Memphis, Miami, Minnesota, Oklahoma City, Sacramento, San Antonio and Toronto have no one participating in All-Star night events.

Kawhi Leonard was ruled out of Tuesday night's game against the Boston Celtics because of back spasms that hampered the LA Clippers All-Star forward during warm-ups.

Leonard warmed up but left the TD Garden court shortly before tipoff with his back not feeling right. He was replaced in the starting lineup by Reggie Jackson. The Clippers then announced late in the first quarter that Leonard was ruled out for the game with the back issue.

Leonard missed two games early this season because of a mouth laceration. He sat out another two games because of health and safety protocols from contact tracing for COVID-19. And he missed three games in mid-February because of a lower left leg contusion. He returned from that injury and played in six straight games until the back spasms kept him out Tuesday.

The All-Star is averaging 26.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists this season.

Also Tuesday, the Clippers lost Marcus Morris Sr. for the second half against the Celtics because of a concussion he suffered after appearing to take an inadvertent elbow to the head late in the second quarter.

The Clippers play at Washington on Thursday before entering the All-Star break.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Diamondbacks starting right fielder Kole Calhoun will have surgery Wednesday on his right knee because of a medial meniscus tear.

Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said on Tuesday that he wasn't sure whether the injury would cause Calhoun to miss opening day on April 1. The manager said the injury occurred during offseason training and nagging pain led Calhoun to have an MRI.

The 33-year-old Calhoun was one of the D-backs' best players in 2020, finishing with a team-high 16 homers. He is entering the second season of a $16 million, two-year deal.

"Obviously concerned," Lovullo said. "I don't want to sugarcoat that, but I know it's going to give an opportunity to some other guys and I'm excited about that as well.''

Lovullo said there are several players who could see added at-bats if Calhoun misses extended time, including Pavin Smith, Andy Young, Tim Locastro, Wyatt Mathisen, Daulton Varsho, Trayce Thompson and Josh VanMeter.

"We've got some guys who can do it,'' Lovullo said. "They're going to get an opportunity. It's up to them to take advantage.''

CLEARWATER, Fla. -- After playing in his first game with the Philadelphia Phillies since his arrest on domestic violence charges two years ago, Odubel Herrera apologized and vowed he's a better person.

"I feel sorry because I made a big mistake," Herrera said Tuesday. "I know some people are not going to forgive me, and I understand that. I spent the last two years earning [my girlfriend's] trust back and I'm grateful she forgave me. Now, I would like to have the same opportunity with my teammates, our fans and the Phillies family."

The former All-Star center fielder was 1-for-3 with a single and stolen base in a 4-2 loss to Toronto. He played right field, and manager Joe Girardi said he "looked pretty normal."

Herrera had last played on May 26, 2019. He was suspended for the remainder of the season under Major League Baseball's domestic violence policy. The charges against Herrera were dismissed, and he was assigned outright to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Jan. 16 last year and wasn't part of the 60-player pool for the shortened season.

Herrera will earn $10 million in 2021 in the final season of a $30.5 million, five-year contract that includes two club options, and he is at spring training as a non-roster player.

"I learned a lot the past two years," he said. "I feel mature. I have changed a lot. I feel I am a better person now."

Herrera underwent counseling in Philadelphia and also did virtual sessions.

"My relationship is better," he said. "I feel more mature."

Herrera said he addressed teammates in the clubhouse before playing against the Blue Jays, and he plans to speak to other players who didn't travel for the game.

"I want to play baseball, help the team win and play my game," he said. "I told them I love this uniform and I feel happy to wear the uniform again."

Herrera, 29, was an All-Star in his second season in the majors in 2016 when he batted .286 with 15 homers, 49 RBIs, 25 stolen bases and had a .361 on-base percentage. He had a career-high 22 homers and 71 RBIs in 2018.

Herrera had lost his starting job and was batting just .222 at the time of his arrest.