Arber Xhekaj faces punishment from the NHL Department of Player Safety after fighting Cedric Pare last night

PUBLICATION

Aaron Itovitch
September 29, 2024  (12:29)

SHARE THIS STORY

Photo credit: Markerzone

It was an extremely difficult night for Montreal Canadiens fans, as they watched fifth overall pick David Reinbacher and superstar Patrik Laine suffer major injuries.

The man responsible for injuring Patrik Laine, who was acquired by the Montreal Canadiens from the Columbus Blue Jackets in August, was Toronto Maple Leafs depth AHL defenseman Cedric Pare - somebody who realistically had no business playing in a preseason game.

His dirty knee to knee hit might have ended Patrik Laine's season, and Montreal Canadiens enforcer defenseman Arber Xhekaj made sure he paid heavily for it, throwing several punches at him and throwing him down to the ice.

YOU CAN VIEW THE FIGHT HERE

Arber Xhekaj was booted from the game, and has now been fined by the NHL's department of player safety.

He has received the maximum allowable fine by the NHL's department of player safety due to his actions. While Montreal Canadiens fans lauded him for his instinct to stand up for his teammate, which is what hockey is all about, some Toronto Maple Leafs fans believed he should have faced a massive 20+ game suspension.

The rivalry is clearly still strong between these two teams, but the pain of losing Patrik Laine will not go away any time soon. Hopefully neither David Reinbacher nor Patrik Laine are out long-term, but both injuries looked very bad.

Warning: include(/home//inout/pub_inline.php): failed to open stream: No such file or directory in /home/marqueur/public_html/news/auto/blogs_id/435837.php on line 37

Warning: include(): Failed opening '/home//inout/pub_inline.php' for inclusion (include_path='.:/opt/cpanel/ea-php74/root/usr/share/pear') in /home/marqueur/public_html/news/auto/blogs_id/435837.php on line 37

Previously

Toronto Maple Leafs' Cedric Pare shows no remorse in disgusting postgame interview after injuring Patrik Laine

Detroit Red Wings vs Pittsburgh Penguins game officially postponed due to further travel issues

Sheldon Keefe's time with the New Jersey Devils reportedly off to a bad start

POLL
SEPTEMBRE 29   |   207 ANSWERS Arber Xhekaj faces punishment from the NHL Department of Player Safety after fighting Cedric Pare last night Do you think Cedric Pare should also face discipline from the NHL department of player safety?
Yes	134	64.7 %
No	73	35.3 %
LIST OF POLLS

MUST READ

Feb 28  |  By Tom Banks Vancouver Canucks' Contract Offer to Brock Boeser Leaks Publicly

Feb 28  |  By Tom Banks Montreal Canadiens Star Undergoes Season-Ending Knee Surgery

Feb 28  |  By Daniel Lucente Philadelphia Flyers Officially Looking to Trade Former 39-Goal Scorer

Feb 28  |  By Daniel Lucente Evander Kane May Be in His Final Days in Edmonton After Friedman Reveals New Information

Feb 28  |  By Mike Whitaker Maple Leafs Forward Pulls Back Trade Request

Feb 27  |  By Mike Whitaker Brad Marchand Goes Viral for Passionate Video Ahead of Four Nations Faceoff Final

Feb 27  |  By Mike Whitaker David Pastrnak's Latest Comments Suggest Bruins Will Be Big Sellers at the Deadline

Feb 27  |  By Julien Trekker 6-Foot-6 Winger Linked to the New York Rangers at the Trade Deadline

MORE STORIES