Michael Bunting and Wayne Simmonds get scrappy with one another at practice
Overshadowed by the trade deadline activity on Monday, the Toronto Maple Leafs were back at practice in preparation for the Next Gen game coming up on Wednesday night against the New Jersey Devils.
Monday's practice was high-paced and very competitive, particularly one exchange between forwards Michael Bunting and Wayne Simmonds, who got a little scrappy with one another.
There have been plenty of documented cases of teammates actually getting into a physical altercation following an intense battle at practice. In the case of Bunting and Simmonds, both players are used to playing on the edge and certainly don't mind the elevated competition level in practice. This much was evident when Bunting and Simmonds putting an arm around one another and sharing a stick tap as practice wrapped.
As far as Sheldon Keefe was concerned, that level of competition was welcomed. The bench boss appreciated the energy and commitment to grinding at practice. On the dust up between Scarborough, ON natives Simmer and Bunting, Keefe had this to say:
The addition of forward Colin Blackwell should create some more competition at practice, as the 28-year-old plays a similar style to the Leafs' two scrappy Scarborough boys.
| POLL | ||
MARS 22 | 410 ANSWERS Michael Bunting and Wayne Simmonds get scrappy with one another at practice Is this version of the Leafs better built for the playoffs than last year's team? | ||
| I think so | 160 | 39 % |
| It's hard to say | 120 | 29.3 % |
| Not at all | 64 | 15.6 % |
| We'll find out in May | 66 | 16.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
