Reaves argues with Xhekaj, saying that it looks bad since the Leafs won 7-3.

Dose
Crédit:

On Saturday night, the Canadiens dominated the Leafs in the first period.

Kirby Dach, Patrik Laine, and Josh Anderson scored, so the Habs had a 3-0 lead at one point during the first twenty minutes.

This is when Ryan Reaves approached Arber Xhekaj to ask him if he wanted to drop the gloves. Xhekaj said no… while pointing at the scoreboard.

The Leafs player reflected on what happened, and obviously, he took the opportunity to taunt the Canadiens defender.

Reaves argues that Xhekaj looked bad in the context of the Leafs scoring seven unanswered goals to ultimately win the game 7-3:

You point at the scoreboard and then get scored on for seven. You look bad. – Ryan Reaves

It’s certain that Xhekaj’s reaction after Reaves’ request rattled the Leafs.

Every time a player makes a gesture like that in sports, it prompts a reaction, after all…

But on the other hand, Xhekaj was right in a sense because he had no interest in harming his team while the score was 3-0 in favor of the Canadiens.

He didn’t want to fight to change the momentum, but despite that, that’s exactly what happened in the end.

That said, Ryan Reaves could have felt a little embarrassed too because it’s not like he contributed to his team’s victory.

He didn’t play more than seven minutes in the game (6:38), he was blanked on the score sheet, and he finished the game with a +/- of 0.

But still, it’s true that in hindsight, Arber Xhekaj might have should have avoided pointing at the scoreboard to his opponent.

The Canadiens defender should have simply declined the invitation without necessarily being rude… and it ultimately backfired on him.

In Brief

– Note:

– Quite.

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