Breaking: Flyers' Patrick barely survives trash hit from behind!

The Philadelphia Flyers fans love their players. 

Nolan Patrick is a popular one: the young forward is well-liked by the passionate crowd and you bet the New Jersey Devils had an ear full on Friday night when one of their players went after Patrick. 

During the first period of the game between the two Eastern clubs, Devils' Kurtis Gabriel delivered a brutal hit that caught Patrick from behind. The poor guy ended up stamping his own face into the boards and fell to the ice. 

Look at this trash hit: 

While he did manage to get up and skate on his own power, which is a good sign, Patrick missed the rest of the period as it is believed he underwent the concussion protocol. Gabriel was sent to the box for a boarding major, but was not ejected from the contest. 

He did come back in the game at the end of the first period. 

Many believe the NHL Player Safety department will have to take a look at this hit from Gabriel. 

Flyers fans took to Twitter to express their hate towards Gabriel and the rest of the Devils' crew...