Arber Xhekaj's Actions Towards Ryan Reaves May Have Been the Catalyst in Leafs' Comeback Win

A talking point before last night's contest between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Montreal Canadiens revolved around Ryan Reaves and whether or not we would see his first fighting major of the season. With Arber Xhekaj in the lineup and their history with one another, it almost seemed like a foregone conclusion that the pair would drop the gloves.

Head coach Craig Berube brought Reaves back into the lineup after he was made a healthy scratch during their 4-3 overtime victory against the New Jersey Devils. In what was expected to be a spirited bout between two bitter rivals, the added physicality that Reaves brings to the table was believed to be a necessary requirement.

The Canadiens stormed out to a quick 3-0 lead before the first period even came to a close. Looking for a spark, Reaves tried to goad Xhekaj into dropping his gloves, but the latter shooed away the former while also pointing towards the scoreboard to remind him of the score.

The pair would then engage in an exchange on the ice while the Maple Leafs were in the offensive zone. Reaves was trying to position himself at the front of the Canadiens' goal but Xhekaj did a good job in keeping him at bay, which was unfortunately as far they went in the physicality department.

Based on what would happen next, does Xhekaj regret his decision to not only reject the fight, but to insult Reaves and the Maple Leafs with a 3-goal lead in the first period?

Soon after, the Maple Leafs mounted a comeback of epic proportions as they scored 7 unanswered goals. Bobby McMann and Nick Robertson tallied in the second period before William Nylander, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Auston Matthews, Steven Lorentz, and David Kampf each found the back of the net in the third period to take down the Canadiens by a score of 7-3.

The game completely tilted into the Maple Leafs' favour by the third period, and while Xhekaj might have had good intentions by keeping in mind that his team had a 3-goal lead, it seemed to have had the opposite effect that he intended.

Reaves finished the contest with 2 hits in 6:38 TOI, while Xhekaj was a minus-1, had 1 shot on goal, 2 hits, and skated 13:41 TOI. One of those hits was a crushing blow against Reaves early in the second period after he had already rejected the fight proposal.

These two clubs don't face off against one another again until the 12th of April, so it's hard to tell if anything from last night's game will spill over three months down the road. However, Reaves and Xhekaj have a history with one another that won't be going anywhere after yesterday's antics.