NHL Star John Tavares Discharged from Hospital After Taking Flying Knee To Face

VERY scary moment on the NHL ice Thursday night ... Toronto Maple Leafs star John Tavares took a flying knee to the face -- and needed a stretcher to leave the rink.

The terrifying moment all went down in the 1st period of the Leafs' playoff tilt vs. the Montreal Canadians ... when Corey Perry accidentally slammed his knee into Tavares' head.

The play was violent ... you can see as Tavares was going down to the ice, his face collided HARD with Perry -- who was in a full sprint.

The ensuing moments were horrifying, because as trainers tried to tend to Tavares -- his body went limp and fell backward.

The 30-year-old -- who's in the middle of a 7-year, $77 MILLION contract with Toronto -- ultimately was strapped to a stretcher and taken to the hospital for further evaluation.

Leafs' coach, Sheldon Keefe, provided some good news on Tavares after the game, saying his star player was "conscious and communicating well" and adding that initial tests had "come back clear."

"I've experienced a lot of different things, a lot of tough injuries like that in my time,'' Keefe said. "In an empty building like that, it's probably the most uncomfortable situation I've been a part of on the ice."

"It was really tough to get through."

Tavares -- the Leafs' captain -- is considered one of the best players in the NHL ... he's tallied 364 career goals and 455 career assists in his 12 seasons in the league.

Get well soon, John.