Carolina Hurricanes captain Eric Staal has a sprained right knee but the injury will not require surgery, it was determined Saturday.

Staal has a third-degree sprain of the right MCL and his recovery time has been set at three months. It is expected he will be ready for the start of the 2013-2014 season.

Staal suffered a knee-on-knee hit Thursday during Canada's game against Sweden in the IIHF World Championship in Stockholm. Swedish defenseman Alex Edler, who hit Staal, was suspended for the remainder of the event by the IIHF for what its disciplinary panel called a "reckless, dangerous" hit.

Staal returned to Raleigh from Sweden on Friday night and underwent an MRI on Saturday.

Canes goalie Cam Ward suffered a third-degree MCL sprain in March that held him out the rest of the season.

Defenseman Alex Edler of Sweden has been suspended for the remainder of the IIHF World Championship for his knee-on-knee hit Thursday on Eric Staal.

Staal, the captain of the Carolina Hurricanes, was to return to Raleigh on Friday from Stockholm and will have an MRI exam Saturday. The severity of his knee injury then will be determined.

Edler, who plays for the Vancouver Canucks, was given the suspension Friday by the IIHF independent disciplinary panel.

The IIHF, in its release, called Edler's hit on Staal in Thursday's quarterfinal game between Canada and Sweden "reckless, dangerous and ... in disregard to the vulnerability of his opponent."

Edler was given a major penalty for kneeing and a game misconduct. Staal, the Team Canada captain, needed to be helped off the ice.

Canes goalie Cam Ward suffered a third-degree knee sprain -- a tear of the MCL in his left knee -- in early March and was sidelined for the remainder of the season. Defenseman Justin Faulk sustained a second-degree knee sprain and was out nine games.

Carolina Hurricanes captain Eric Staal is being evaluated for an apparent knee injury suffered Thursday in the IIHF World Championships in Stockholm, Sweden.

Staal, who also is serving as Canada's team captain, took a knee-on-knee hit from Alex Edler of Sweden with 4:14 left in the first period. He fell to the ice in pain, clutching his right knee.

Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford said Hockey Canada officials called him immediately after Staal left the ice for treatment. Rutherford dd not know the severity of the injury, saying Staal was to have an MRI exam administered by NHL doctors in Stockholm.

"It's unfortunate and hopefully it's not too serious," Rutherford said. "If it is serious, hopefully there will be enough recovery time for him to be ready for next season. We'll just hope for the best."

RALEIGH -- The Amazing Race itself took a month to complete.

The celebration? That may run twice as long.

Bates and Anthony Battaglia have a million dollars to split and countless memories after winning the 22nd edition of CBS's Amazing Race. While the competition ended in the middle of December, the show's finale wasn't shown until Sunday night as the Battaglias hosted a viewing party at Lucky B's, the Glenwood South bar co-owned by Bates Battaglia and Mike Lombardo.

The party was spilling over into Monday when the free-spirited Battaglias, called the "Hockey Brothers" on the show, got together for an interview. Both played pro hockey and Bates Battaglia is a former Carolina Hurricanes forward, but they said it wasn't just their athleticism that was decisive in the Race.

"Yes, we're not just good-looking. We're smart," Bates said. "We're just friendly people but if we have to beat you in a foot race, we'll do it."

Bates Battaglia misses the intense competition that comes with playing professional hockey, so much so that he doesn't even like to attend many Canes games.

"You sit up there watching all the boys playing and you wish you were out there," Battaglia said. "It's tough."

But Battaglia recently found another way to get his competitive juices flowing -- participating on "The Amazing Race." The CBS reality show has its 22nd season finale Sunday night, and Battaglia and his brother, Anthony, are among the final four teams.

Battaglia is sworn to secrecy on the outcome and the million-dollar winners, but the former Canes forward did talk about the month-long experience -- the show was taped from mid-November to mid-December, he said -- in a recent interview.

"It was awesome," he said. "I said to Anthony, 'If we ever get a chance to do it again, I'd do it in a heartbeat.'

The Canes likely will make a number of player changes before next season but there will be no major organizational overhaul, Jim Rutherford said Thursday.

Rutherford will remain president and general manager. Kirk Muller and his coaching staff will return intact. The only change of note will be a new director of professional scouting to succeed Marshall Johnston, who will continue to scout some games.

"I feel good about our whole staff," Rutherford said. "We have a good coaching staff. This coaching staff has been in a tough spot, where they come in halfway through last year, got the team going at the end, then come in this year and don't have a normal season. But I feel good about our coaching staff, feel good about our whole staff. ... We have a real strong hockey staff."

The Canes retained the No. 5 pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft on Monday after the NHL draft lottery was held in Toronto.

The Canes had an 8.1 percent chance of winning the lottery as all 14 non-playoff teams had an opportunity of securing the No. 1 overall pick in the draft.

The Colorado Avalanche won the lottery, moving from the No. 2 position past the Florida Panthers.

The Canes' No. 5 pick will be their highest since Carolina chose defenseman Jack Johnson with the No. 3 selection in 2005.

The ice is still out at PNC Arena, not that it's needed by the Carolina Hurricanes. There will be no playoffs and their season is over.

On Monday, the Canes players milled about the locker room, doing media interviews, packing up equipment bags. They rehashed a season that went awry and ended in disappointment while talking optimistically about next season.

Canes captain Eric Staal said he never expected to be doing year-end interviews so soon.

"Not from where we were at," he said. "We were sitting in a pretty good spot."

PITTSBURGH -- Carolina Hurricanes forward Jordan Staal received a standing ovation Saturday from Pittsburgh Penguins fans at Consol Energy Center.

The Penguins received a bigger one.

The Pens ignited for five goals in the third period for an 8-3 victory. James Neal, returning to the lineup after a concussion, finished with a hat trick and an assist, Jussi Jokinen scored twice and Evgeni Malkin had a goal and two assists for the Eastern Conference's best team.

It was an emotional night for Staal, who spent the first six seasons of his NHL career in Pittsburgh and helped the Pens win the 2009 Stanley Cup. His return to Pittsburgh had to wait until the final day of the regular season, and Pens fans graciously received him well with the ovation in the first period.

"It was nice," Staal said. "I have good memories in this building and in this city and I appreciate that from the fans."

PITTSBURGH -- When Jiri Tlusty scored a career-high 17 goals last year for the Canes, general manager Jim Rutherford called it a breakout season for the winger.

"He's still a young player," Rutherford said last April. "There's still room for him to make an even bigger jump."

Tlusty has made that big jump. He has a team-high 23 goals in 47 games, tied for fifth in the NHL. He has eight two-goal games, including the game Thursday against the New York Rangers, and notched his first career hat trick April 2 against Washington.

Tlusty, 25, has a seven-game point streak going into the last regular-season game against Pittsburgh and has become a fixture on the Canes' top line. On Tuesday, he will leave to compete for the Czech Republic in the 2013 IIHF World Championship in Sweden.

"Last year was my first kind of breakout year," Tlusty said Saturday. "I've had the chance to play with Eric Staal and it definitely has been a good season for myself this year."