Two of the most unlikely players in the NHL to drop the mitts and throw down did just that during the first period of the Chicago Blackhawks game against the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday night.
After the Avalanche found the back of the net three times in just over three minutes to grab a 3-1 advantage, words began to fly in Colorado’s defensive zone between Blackhawks forward Alex DeBrincat and Avalanche defender Samuel Girard.
Moments later, words were substituted with fists.
The Cat is out of the bag. pic.twitter.com/x22LS4sr5u
— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) December 1, 2019
Although the bout was short, there’s no doubt it was spirited as DeBrincat landed a couple of big shots before the two tumbled to the ice.
The fight was the second of both of their young NHL careers, according to hockeyfights.com. DeBrincat (five-foot-seven, 165 lbs.) had previously thrown hands with Matt Irwin of the Nashville Predators during a brawl nearly a year ago while Girard (five-foot-ten, 170 lbs.) squared off against Zac Rinaldo — of all people — back in December of 2017.
(Well, kind of. In all actuality, Girard stepped up to Rinaldo after the veteran of 45 NHL tussles took a run at teammate Nathan MacKinnon and was swiftly dropped with one vicious punch to the kisser.)
Unfortunately for DeBrincat, his efforts on Saturday didn’t end up sparking his side.
Colorado went on to score four more unanswered goals to begin the second period. That gave them a comfortable 7-1 advantage midway through the contest and allowed them to glide to the 7-3 victory.
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