Settle a score? Domi and Ekblad meet again after preseason sucker punch

CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. — It’s not often a skirmish during the preseason gets so much attention.

Yet when one of the top young defensemen in the NHL gets sucker-punched by a player from the Montreal Canadiens, well, that’s not going to fly under the radar.

Back in September during an exhibition game at Bell Centre, Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad and Montreal forward Max Domi got tangled up in the corner.

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Domi wanted to fight; Ekblad did not and refused to return blows after being punched a few times.

Then came the big shot.

When Ekblad looked to the referee to break things up, Domi dropped his right glove and buried his fist in Ekblad’s face, breaking his nose.

A few days later, Ekblad was back on the ice for practice with a busted-up nose and a pair of black eyes.

“I think it’s dumb. I think he’s stupid for doing it,” Ekblad said. “But in the end, that’s hockey. That’s the way it goes.

“Scores will get settled at a later date.”

Well, that later date is finally here as Ekblad and Domi face each other for the first time since the incident on Friday night in Sunrise.

So, will the two drop gloves when the whistle blows? Does Ekblad engage Domi during the game, or does Domi come right after Ekblad?

Or does nothing happen at all?

“With the emotions of it coming a few days after, you say things and things happen,” Ekblad said following Florida’s post-Christmas, pre-Canadiens practice on Thursday.

“But in the end, at this point of the season and how important the points are, this is completely out of my mind. I might have to be paired up against him (Friday) night, and there will be a lot of back-and-forth and us battling. But that’s part of the game.”

Here’s the thing: Friday’s game is pretty important for both teams.

The Canadiens come out the break holding the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Florida is seven points back with two games in hand.

Since this is the first of four meetings between the two, the Panthers will have ample opportunity to make up some ground against the Canadiens.

So perhaps scores will have to be settled at a later date than Friday.

“I will probably address it (with Ekblad) on game day,” Florida coach Bob Boughner said.

“It was so long ago, in a preseason game, both teams have sort of moved on from it. We have to concentrate on the points. We can’t be focused on some side deal. It has passed; hopefully, it’s something we don’t have to deal with.”

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Ekblad and the Panthers were not expected to say anything derogatory about the Canadiens or show their hand when it comes to Domi on Thursday and they did not.

Had Ekblad said he was ready to throw down before the game started — or Boughner said Micheal Haley is in the lineup Friday just to take on Domi — anything that goes down could be considered premeditated and perhaps lead to league scrutiny.

So Ekblad said all the right things, as did his coach.

Come Friday night, we will see if they mean it.

“When it comes down to it, I don’t play a dirty game. I don’t go out of my way or take suspensions. That’s not my game,” Ekblad said Thursday. “I’m out there with a good stick, trying to keep pucks out of our net and try to create some offense.

“At this point of the season, this is a four-point game. It’s extremely important. We’re chasing these guys down. It’s extremely important we get these points. It’s one of the most important games of the year.”

(Top photo: George Richards / The Athletic)

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