Leafs' Cedric Pare Destroys Patrik Laine's Knee, Catches a Beating from Arber Xhekaj

Laine was recently acquired in a trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets and it had brought a new sense of excitement within the Canadiens' fan base. Unfortunately in tonight's contest with the Toronto Maple Leafs, he was forced out of the game after being caught by a knee-on-knee hit from Pare. The way his leg bent, it certainly didn't look good.

Traversing through the neutral zone and into the Maple Leafs' end, Laine tried dancing through two players before colliding knee-first with Pare, who certainly did not look to avoid the contact. Seconds later, Canadiens' defenseman Arber Xhekaj came to the rescue of his fallen teammate and started clobbering Pare before the whistle blew and more players were involved.

For jumping in on Pare, Xhekaj was given an instigator penalty and a game misconduct, which resulted in a total of 27 PIMs. The Maple Leafs were then given a 7-minute power play and were able to convert on the power play for the game's first goal, courtesy of Nick Robertson, who now has goals in back-to-back games.

The 25-year-old Pare was brought in by the Maple Leafs this summer and has yet to make his NHL debut since being drafted in the 6th round by the Boston Bruins in 2017. He signed a one year, two-way contract and is expected to start the season with the Toronto Marlies.