While the role of enforcers has been on a precipitous decline in the last decade, there are still a few heavy weights left to make their impact on the league. One such player would be none other than Ryan Reaves. Reaves has collected over 1000 penalty minutes in his career including over 400 penalty minutes from fighting majors alone.
Michael Pezzetta Wants to Fight Reaves Again
Not many in the league are brave enough to challenge Reaves to a fight, let alone two weeks prior to the season starting, but Habs forward Michael Pezzetta seemingly is.
"When I found out that Reaves was signing in Toronto, I was excited. I'm someone who likes to play hard, so when there are guys like him on the other side, it makes things more interesting."
This wouldn't be the first time these two players dropped the gloves. They fought on November 16th, 2021, giving the fans at Madison Square Garden a little extra show. At that time, Reaves was with the New York Rangers and Pezzetta was a rookie looking to make a name for himself in the league. Pezzetta recalls the fight fondly.
"I don't know about you, but I was at center ice at Madison Square Garden, got my first point two games earlier and my first goal the game before that. So, this fight against him, for me, was a lot of fun."
Pezzetta Is No Stranger To Fighting
Not only is Pezzetta no stranger to fighting Reaves, but he isn't afraid to drop the gloves with just about anyone. Despite having played just 114 career games, he's already up to 14 career fights and he has dropped the gloves with other famous tough guys such as Tom Wilson, Corey Perry, and Wayne Simmonds.
Notably, Toronto and Montreal face each other three times in preseason as well as on opening night in Toronto. Reaves was brought in specifically to add some character and toughness to the Leafs, so perhaps a fight like this makes sense for both sides.
| POLL | ||
24 SEPTEMBRE | 35 ANSWERS Michael Pezzetta hints at another fight with Ryan Reaves Do you want to see a Reaves Pezzetta rematch? | ||
| Yes | 31 | 88.6 % |
| No | 4 | 11.4 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
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