Maple Leafs’ Matthew Knies fights Golden Knights’ Zach Whitecloud after opening faceoff

Toronto Maple Leafs forward Matthew Knies entered Wednesday’s game against the Vegas Golden Knights with vengeance evidently on his mind.

Knies dropped the gloves to fight Golden Knights defenceman Zach Whitecloud after the opening faceoff, four seconds into the game. It’s clear that Knies was trying to avenge an incident from November 20, where Whitecloud dropped Knies with a legal, high hit. Knies suffered an upper-body injury as a result of the play, he was ruled out of the contest and missed 10 days of action.
“I put myself in a tough scenario. I was just trying to get the puck in and you gotta keep your head up. I’m kind of upset that it led me to getting hurt, but it happens in hockey. He apologized to me. I don’t think he’s intending to hurt me,” Knies told TSN’s Mark Masters on November 29.

Milestone No. 27: The Avalanche win their second Stanley Cup

Report: Avalanche’s Interest in Brock Nelson Persists

In a four-player blockbuster, the Bruins are offering a star defenseman for $24 million.

Whitecloud was not asked about the hit on Knies after the previous game.

Although Knies appeared to understand that Whitecloud had no ill intention during the previous game, it was still enough to get him to drop the gloves immediately.

Here is the fight, where Knies landed a flurry of left-handed punches, before attempting to wrestle Whitecloud to the ice.

https://twitter.com/TSN_Sports/status/1897488562934686139?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1897488562934686139%7Ctwgr%5E62e0f52c97c7dfccc4a4efdc70f5836a167b9a8c%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheleafsnation.com%2Fnews%2Ftoronto-maple-leafs-matthew-knies-fights-golden-knights-zach-whitecloud-opening-faceoff

Knies plays with a physical presence, but he’s not known for his fighting ability. It’s clear that he was still upset about Whitecloud’s hit from the November 20 game, and took it into his own hands, quite literally.
It was a one-off incident, as the Maple Leafs and Golden Knights resumed the first period without further hostility. Knies has emerged as an essential part of the Maple Leafs and there was reason to be briefly concerned about him getting into a fight, but both players emerged unscathed. The 22-year-old is expected to be untouchable ahead of Friday’s trade deadline, as the Maple Leafs value his scoring touch, physicality and ability to get the net-front with ease, both at 5-on-5 and on the power play.