It’s not uncommon for teammates to settle their differences with their fists at practice when the team is struggling. It probably happens more than most fans would think.
However, when it happens within the Montreal Canadiens‘ organization, it’s a fair bet that it will garner more attention compared to most teams.
Such was the case at Copps Coliseum on Monday, with the Bulldogs gearing up for their matchup against the Texas Stars on Tuesday, a fight ensued while the team was working on their breakouts.
Taking a rest following the drill, forward Nick Tarnasky and defenceman Darren Dietz had some choice words for one another that quickly turned into a fight.
As both players dropped the gloves, fellow teammates took exception and rushed in to break up the altercation.
It’s unclear who and what initiated the dispute between Tarnasky and Dietz.
It’s not a surprise that Tarnasky, who is no stranger to fighting, was involved in any sort of altercation. It does come as somewhat of a surprise though that Dietz, only 20 years of age and playing in his first professional season, would muster up the courage to take on a well-known enforcer like Tarnasky.
At any rate, these kinds of things are bound to happen with a locker room full of proud hockey players, frustrated from a recent dry spell.
Following practice, defenceman Nathan Beaulieu, playing in his second season with the Bulldogs, downplayed the fight between Tarnasky and Dietz and says that the occasional scrap at practice is expected from time to time.
“It happens all the time, it’s part of the game and they’ll be shaking hands when they leave the rink today,” said Beaulieu. “It’s part of the job and stuff like that happens and it brings the team closer.”
Beaulieu also touched on the team’s recent slump after finally snapping a six-game losing streak with a shootout win against Lake Erie over the weekend. Beaulieu believes that despite the recent struggles, the team took away some valuable lessons.
“We found a lot of positives to come out of them and we broke out of it,” said Beaulieu. “Hopefully we can get rolling again.”
Bulldogs head coach Sylvain Lefebvre mentioned that over the course of a 76-game season, it’s important to keep emotions in check and not give in to any frustrations.
“As long as the frustration doesn’t set in. I think during the course of a season, you’re going to win some games that you probably don’t deserve,” said Lefebvre. “When you don’t win and you deserve to win, you can’t get frustrated.”
Hamilton will host the Texas Stars on Tuesday. Only the Abbotsford Heat have scored more goals than the Stars this season.
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