Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images

Canadiens-Senators Clash Heats Up With Fight After 'Painful' Pre-Game Warning

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Antonio Losada | Last updated Feb 23, 2025 7:15 AM ET

The Montreal Canadiens resumed action after the Four Nations break with a 5-2 win over the Ottawa Senators.

While the win will matter most in determining where the team is positioned in the standings when the regular season is over, the biggest moment of the night came when Juraj Slafkovsky dropped the gloves with Ridly Greig in the third period.

The fight erupted after Greig delivered a big hit on Slafkovsky with 13:17 minutes left in the third and final period and the Habs already leading by three goals.

Slafkovsky immediately responded by throwing off his gloves, delivering on Arber Xhekaj’s pre-game comments on Senators forward Brady Tkachuk.

Juraj Slafkovský en FURIE après une mise en échec tardive de Ridly Greig, au grand plaisir d'Arber Xhekaj! pic.twitter.com/zvI5cCErQX
— RDS (@RDSca) February 23, 2025

Slafkovsky and Greig exchanged heavy punches with the former dominating the bout from the get-go until the latter responded.

Ultimately, both contestants were knocked off balance and fell to the ice with the two of them receiving fighting majors.

The intensity of the game was foreshadowed before puck drop when Canadiens defenseman Xhekaj hinted that fights were inevitable as he was ready to go against Senators' Tkachuk if he played on Saturday.

“I’m going straight to him. I’m going to crunch him. I don’t care. I want to make his life miserable. I want his evening to be painful,” Xhekaj said on Friday.

The forward didn't end up playing because of an injury sustained during the 4 Nations Face-Off that Ottawa considers a "day-to-day thing," per Elliotte Friedman.

On top of putting on a fighting show, Slafkovsky also had a strong offensive showing, scoring Montreal’s fifth goal late in the second period.

“This year, I don’t like my play, and I was thinking about it during the break and had to change something coming back,” Slafkovsky said. “It was better today, for sure.

“I was winning a lot of pucks on the forecheck, playing body, making other players uncomfortable on the other side. That’s important.

“If I bring that every night, I just help my line.”

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: