'Four front teeth' on NHL star Jaromir Jagr's Christmas list

National Hockey League veteran Jaromir Jagr celebrated a win and notched an assist in a Florida Panthers victory on Tuesday but afterwards had to amend his Christmas wish-list to Santa.

The 43-year-old Czech, who climbed to fourth on the NHL's all-time scoring list on Sunday, lost four front teeth after taking a high stick to the face from Alex Chiasson in Florida's 2-1 shootout victory over the Ottawa Senators.

Jagr left the ice bleeding heavily from his mouth midway through the first period, but returned to play and later joked about it.

Florida Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr is assisted on the ice after being hit by a stick to the face. Photo: AP

"Dear Santa, can I get a new teeth for Christmas; it's going to be tough to eat-good - at least I don't get fat," Jagr tweeted in sending a photo of his gap-toothed mouth after the game.

To show he had no hard feelings about the incident, Jagr gave Chiasson, a teammate of his in the Dallas Stars' organisation during the 2012-13 season, a pat on the shoulder as he skated off the ice after the high-sticking.

"Tough play," Chiasson said. "You never want to see that. I obviously didn't mean to hit him. He's a legend in this league."

Reuters