Odessa Jackalopes defenseman Dave Van Drunen returned Monday to the Permian Basin, bloodied, bruised and with a surgically repaired jaw, nose and face.

Van Drunen, in his third season with the Jackalopes, suffered a broken jaw and broken nose during a third-period melee Saturday night in an exhibition game against the Colorado Eagles in Loveland, Colo.

Caught unaware by Colorado’s Brad MacMillan, Van Drunen crumpled to the ice while all around him a line brawl broke out. Former Jackalopes defenseman Mario Joly, now with the Eagles, came off the bench and challenged several of the Odessa players on the ice to come onto the ice and fight.

Coming on the heels of seven fights in the first two minutes of the third period, the MacMillan-Van Drunen incident prompted Jackalopes coach Paul Gillis to pull his team from the ice and forfeit the game.

The Jackalopes were winning 3-1 at the time after beating the Eagles 7-3 in an exhibition game Thursday.

“I’ve been around hockey a long time,” Gillis said Monday. “If that’s not the worst thing that I’ve ever seen, it’s right up there.

“This is an exhibition game. There was absolutely no reason for what happened.”

Van Drunen was taken to a local hospital Saturday in Loveland and had surgery Sunday morning. Teammates Philippe Plante and Dominic Leveille stayed in Colorado to drive Van Drunen home when he was released from the hospital.

The rest of his teammates came home Sunday, many worse for the wear after the final brawl.

“It was pretty amazing to see,” defenseman Alex Dunn said. “They jumped us early in the period and then they jumped us again when we had a lot of our smaller guys on the ice — Berny (Kenny Bernard), Rammer (Mike Ramsay), (Ryan) Ramage — and they were hitting them down on the ice.

“I don’t know why they were doing it, but that has no place in the game.”

Jackalopes owner Rick Gasser confirmed that he had filed assault charges against MacMillan on Saturday night and asked for the Eagles’ forward to be arrested not once or twice, but three times, and was rebuked each time.

Gasser also stated more charges are likely to be filed against some of the other participants in the incident.

“Thursday night when we played them was like ‘Slapshot’,” Gasser said in reference to the famous minor-league hockey movie. “Saturday night was a horror show. They should be ashamed of themselves.

“I’m asking the league for a lifetime ban for MacMillan, at least 20 games for Mario and a season-long suspension for (Eagles assistant coach Greg) Pankewicz, because he was the one running the team that night while their coach, Chris Stewart, was watching the game from the stands to evaluate.”

Central Hockey League commissioner Duane Lewis released a statement Monday about the aborted contest.

“We are looking at all the video and facts from the incidents and that occurred and will announce our findings/decision as soon as possible,” Lewis said. “As a league we certainly do not condone some of the actions of some of the players in the contest and are looking at all the supporting material and conducting necessary interviews so that just and fair determinations can be made for all involved.”

Van Drunen, who was planning on making the 2010-2011 Central Hockey League season his last as a professional, will miss at least six to eight weeks while the injuries heal.